House of Ellada
by water wolf 100
Summary: A summer in Greece leads Sibuna to their greatest mystery yet. When tensions rise in this island paradise will the Anubis House students find happiness in the sun or will their relationships be reduced to ruins?
1. House of Arrival

**At long last I have found time to start my new story! It only took a blizzard for me to find the time. As much as I hate snow and winter I'm greatful for it. I dedicate this chapter to Purple Snowstorm becasue she posted the most amazing clips on Youtube. Deleted scenes from HoA! I was totally shocked that they even existed so thank you so much Snowy! I also want to thank Joker 236 for helping me plan out some of this story when it was still in the brainstorming phase. I hope I can update this story frequently but I make no guarantees. I'll work on this whenever I get the chance to though. Even if it takes me weeks upon weeks to update, I will not give up on this story! OK I think you all have waited enough for this. I hope you enjoy House of Ellada. (BTW Ellada is the Greek word for Greece hahaha) OK Peace Out**

**~Wolfie**

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Chapter 1 House of Arrival

"Thank you for flying British Airways. Do not forget to remove all your bags from the overhead compartment. We hope you have a good trip," the flight attendant said over the intercom. Nina Martin stood up in her seat and stretched. That had been one of the longest flights she had ever been on.

Standing up on her toes Nina pulled her green suitcase from above her head. Being careful to not step on anyone's feet, Nina made her way down the aisle and exited the plane. The airport was packed with people all scurrying around like mice. "Enjoy your stay," a woman at the door to the terminal said with a smile. Nina smiled back and waved good-bye.

"This is so exciting!" Nina exclaimed to herself. "Now I just have to find everyone else. I hope they all made it here all right." With a huge smile on her face Nina began to walk through the airport to find the flight listings data. She couldn't believe that she was here. This was going to be the trip of a lifetime.

Shortly after school ended for the year Nina was back home in America, enjoying her days off of school. She missed her friends in England a lot, but it was still nice to be home. Then one day, Nina received a call from Amber. She had invited everyone in Anubis House to come spend a month with her at her summer home, in Greece.

So after a lot of begging, pleading and planning Nina was finally in Greece. Amber had repeatedly told Nina that she would absolutely love Greece. Tired of walking around, Nina stopped to browse through some magazines at a newsstand. While she was reading someone snaked a pair of arms around her waist and lifted her up into the air. With a small shriek Nina spun her body around to find herself staring into a pair of mischievous blue eyes. "Jerome!" Nina shouted excitedly. The brown-haired boy set her down and wrapped his long arms around her in a hug. "It's great to see you."

"Don't forget about me!" Nina turned to head to see Alfie standing next to Jerome. With a small laugh Nina let go of Jerome and went to hug her friend.

"When did you guys get here?" Nina asked.

"'Bout an hour ago," Jerome responded. We went to go find food, but instead we found you."

"So that means the other are all here then, right?" Alfie nodded and Nina picked up her suitcase. "So what are we still doing here?" Together, the three teens made their way across the large airport. Soon, Jerome pointed to a group of four people standing by a huge bay window. With an excited squeal Nina took off towards the four teens. Just as she was reaching them, one of them turned to face her and his face lit up.

"Nina!" he exclaimed. Nina let go of her suitcase and threw her arms around her friend. "It's so great to see you Nina!"

"Fabian, let the poor girl breathe," Mara said with a small laugh. Fabian blushed and let Nina out of the hug. Nina then went to give Mara, Patricia and Mick hugs as well.

"Patricia what did you do to your hair?" Nina asked. Patricia smiled ever so faintly and ran a hand through her hair. During school it had been long and a deep reddish-brown but now it was she had cut it to just above her shoulders. She also had dyed it dark brown with electric blue tips. "It suits you."

"So are we going to hang out in the airport all day or are we going to get going?" Alfie asked impatiently. The others all nodded in agreement and went to the luggage return to find Nina's second suitcase. Once they found it they left the secure part of the airport and saw a man by the wall with a sign that read 'Millington Party'.

"Ah you must be Miss Millington's friends. You can call me Philip, I will be the one taking you to the Millington estate," he said in a very thick Greek accent. He pushed a strand of shaggy brown hair out of his face and smiled at the group. "Miss Millington has been anxiously awaiting your arrival. Come along." Philip began to walk away and the others all followed closely behind him.

"So, Philip," Jerome said placing an arm around the man's shoulders. "Any attractive girls in this country?" Philip stared at Jerome like he was a total lunatic and lifted his arm from his shoulder.

Patricia picked up her pace and smacked Jerome hard in the back of the head. "Ouch! What was that for?" he asked irritably.

"For being a pig. We haven't even been here two hours and I'm already annoyed with you," she snapped back. The two of them continued to bicker as they walked along. Nina and Fabian looked at each other and laughed.

"Getting any feeling of déjà vu?" Nina asked as they watched the fight in front of them. Fabian nodded and rolled his eyes.

"Is that what we're taking to Amber's house?" Mara finally asked. Confused everyone looked to where she was pointing and six jaws dropped. Sitting on a giant concrete block was a helicopter. It was dark green in color and had a giant white M on the side of it.

Philip nodded and motioned them to follow him to the craft. "You are correct young lady. I'll be flying you all to the Millington's estate. This is Dóxa, the Millington's private helicopter. Now come, we don't have all day do we?" Philip slid open the side of the helicopter and motioned for everyone to get in.

"What about our luggage?" Mara asked.

"It will be brought in the other helicopter. Now come along." Slowly all seven teens got into the helicopter and sat in plush leather seats. "Buckle up and put on the headphones in front of your seats," Philip instructed as he sat in the pilot's chair. Everyone did what he said without question or hesitation.

After pressing a series of buttons and flipping some switches the blades of the helicopter began spinning and it slowly lifted itself off of the ground. "It will take some time to reach the island so in the mean time enjoy the view," Philip said into his own headset. They began to fly out over the water and everyone was totally silent as they watched the passing landscape.

The crystal blue water was dotted with hundreds of different islands of every size and shape imaginable. Tall buildings could be seen from the larger islands and on some of the other small ones it was nothing but a fleck of green. There were teeny tiny flecks of white near the shores of many of the islands that resembled boats. Mara had taken out her camera and was taking pictures of everything that she could.

After two hours Jerome, Alfie and Mara had all fallen asleep. Mick was flipping through a sports magazine and Fabian and Nina having a conversation on a notebook that Nina had brought with her. _So how was the first few weeks of your summer? _Fabian wrote out in his messy sprawl. Nina took the pen from his hands and scribbled—_It was great. I was able to spend time with my friends in America. You? _Fabian smiled and took the pen back and began scribbling something on the paper. Their conversation continued like this for another forty five minutes. Fabian was holding the pen, about to write something when he paused momentarily. Nina gave him a puzzled look and he began to write _Nina there is something that I need to tell you._ He was about to continue writing when a static buzzing filled their headphones. "All right kids, we're here," Philip said. He pointed to an island below them and Nina excitedly looked out the window. With a slight frown on his face, Fabian clicked the pen shut and began shaking Jerome and Alfie's shoulders to wake them up.

Philip landed the helicopter and soon the spinning blade came to a stop. Mick, who was closest to the door slid it open and climbed out into the bright afternoon sunlight. "This is quite the island," Patricia said in awe. Everyone began to look around and Philip got out of the helicopter and stood by them.

"Welcome to the island of Rhodes. We don't have far to go now. It will only be a five minute car ride so let's get going shall we? Site-seeing will be later on," Philip said as he ushered them towards a car that was sitting near the heli-pad. Well, it was more of a limo really. As soon as they were in the car and the door was shut, the driver pulled away from the helicopter and drove down the road.

The trip really was short and Nina was disappointed that she didn't get to see much of the island on the way but according to Philip they would get to see more later on. "Is that the house?" Fabian asked breathlessly. Nina looked out the window to see the largest, most magnificent house she had ever seen in her life.


	2. House of Greetings

**OK here's chapeter two! YAY! Thanks everyone for all your awsome reviews, they made me happy. Plus they fed my plot bunny, Skip. If I stay on track then I'll have another chapter up by the time HoA comes on. I make no promices but that's my overall goal. I hope you all enjoy House of Ellada chapter two! Peace out.**

**~Wolfie**

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Chapter 2 House of Greetings

All seven teens stared at the house in utter shock. This place made Anubis House look like a dog house. The mansion was built entirely out of white bricks that somehow shone in the afternoon light. The porch had two diverging staircases that both led up to a large brown wooden door. Four marble columns lined the top of the two staircases and stretched up to a balcony two floor above the porch. Each end of the house had round bay with giant windows.

The courtyard in front of the house was just as impressive. Perfectly manicured green grass spread from the front of the house down to the black cast iron gates. A circular driveway went straight up to the main staircase. In the middle of lawn sat a huge marble fountain with a statue of a girl in a long dress in the middle of it. The car stopped momentarily while the gate opened and everyone sat in awe as it pulled up the driveway and came to a stop in front of the stairs. "Here we are," Philip said as if seeing a house like this was an everyday occurrence.

The driver parked the car and opened the door to the limo. Jerome and Alfie shoved their way past the others to be the first ones out. In the process the knocked over Nina who was just about to get out and she fell back with a thud landing on Fabian's lap. "Sorry!" she yelped as she flew up. Nina climbed out of the limo, trying to hide her quickly growing blush.

"This place is fantastic!" Mara exclaimed as she got out of the limo. "I had no idea that the Millington's even owned a place like this." With a quick nod to Philip and the teens the driver got back in the limo and drove away. Everyone was so busy looking at the house before them; they didn't even notice person walking down one of the staircases.

"Welcome dear guests!" a booming voice rang out. The man crossed the courtyard and stood in front of the group. "It is wonderful it is to see you all again."

"Hello Mr. Millington," Mick, Mara, Patricia, Alfie, Jerome and Fabian all chorused at the same time. Nina studied the man before her. He looked a great deal like Amber. He had the same blond hair, the same shining blue eyes and very similar smiles. Just as Nina had expected, Mr. Millington was wearing an expensive looking, crème colored business suit. He must have finally noticed Nina because he turned to her and smiled.

"Now where are my manners? You must be Nina. Amber has told me a great deal about you. It is an honor to meet you," Mr. Millington said with a sincere smile. He took Nina's hand in his own and kissed it gently. Nina blushed but smiled at the man.

"Daddy! You better not be embarrassing me!" a high pitched voice called. With a happy squeal Amber ran down the stairs and threw her arms around the nearest person. Which happened to be Nina.

"Amber. Amber please let go. Amber I can't breathe!" Nina choked out. She tried to pry Amber off of her but it was no use. She shot a glance over to Fabian and Mick who both nodded. Together the two of them were able to pry Amber off of Nina. "Thanks. It's great to see you Amber. I missed you so much," Nina said happily. She took in a deep breath, trying to replenish the oxygen Amber had cut off from her body. Amber went around and hugged each of her friends, even Jerome.

"Daddy, I'm going to show everyone around. Will their cases be here soon?" Amber asked.

"Yes princess, they will have arrived by supper. Have fun. But Amber, remember what's off limits," Mr. Millington said cautiously. With a smile Amber nodded and linked arms with Nina and Patricia.

"I have so much to tell you both. Come on everyone! I'll show you around," Amber called. She led them up the stairs and through the large wooden door.

If they all thought the outside of the house was grand; the inside was in a league of its own. The floor was made of white marble, with a giant mosaic in the middle of the floor in the shape of the letter M made of green tiles. A grand staircase stood before that led up to the second floor. Two statues stood guard at the sides of the staircase, each sculpted to perfection. Nina stepped forward to get a closer look at one of them.

It was of a woman with long curly hair. In one hand she held a shield and in the other was a long spear. Even though the statue was made of stone, the eyes seemed to be glaring at Nina. "That's Athena. Daddy loves Athena," Amber explained. Nina took one last look at the statue and then turned back to her friends.

Amber led them through the foyer and Nina looked at all the details that were put into the house. Archways formed from the spaced in-between the columns were along both sides of the room. At the top of each column were marks of great craftsmanship, each one had an intricate sculpted design at its peak. On the walls were paintings of Greek gods and goddesses as well as pictures of Greece itself.

"Through there is the living room," Amber explained. She gestured to an open door but walked past it. Nina managed to catch a glimpse and saw a wall of windows that overlooked the back lawn. It was beautiful.

"Nina! Keep up! You don't want to get lost do you?" Amber called from the other side of the room. Nina ran over to join them and smiled apologetically at my friends. Amber then led us up the staircase and began showing us all of the rooms. Everything was so clean and perfect and polished in the house, Nina was afraid to even breathe on anything.

Amber led us past a closed door, pretending it wasn't even there. "Amber, what's through there?" Patricia asked. Amber looked at the door, then back at Patricia.

"My dad's study. It's off limits, like super off limits. Even more off limits than the attic and cellar back at Anubis House," Amber said with a hint of nervousness in her voice. Patricia, Nina and Fabian all looked at each other and laughed softly—the no-entry rule for the attic and cellar had long been completely ignored by them when they were at school. "OK well, come on. There's more to show you guys! I'll take you all to your rooms." Briskly, Amber walked farther down the hallway with everyone else on her heels. She turned a few corners and stopped in front of a large dark wooden door. Turning the golden door knob, she pushed the door open and ushered everyone in.

No one was surprised to see that the room was just as fancy as the rest of the house. The marble floors continued into this room as well but in the center of the floor was a large red and gold Persian rug. Two king sized beds covered in red and gold comforters similar to the rug sat against opposite walls, each with its own dresser beside it. In one corner was a sitting area complete with a flat screen TV. The bay window along the back wall was covered with a sheer, tan colored curtain. Through it, a spectacular view of the ocean could be seen. "Daddy said that we have to double up in rooms or else it would be too much work for the maids. This is Patricia and Mara's room. Someone will bring your bags up later on," Amber explained. Mara's eyes doubled in size as she looked at everything in the room.

"This room is fantastic Amber. Look at all the detail in the artwork, and in this rug. It's beautiful," Mara exclaimed. Amber giggled as Mara threw her arms around her friend. Patricia sighed and pulled Mara off of Amber.

"I'll leave you two to freshen up. Come on guys, I'll show you your rooms," Amber called. Patricia shook her head at Mara who was bouncing back and forth across the room looking at everything. Amber led the smaller group down to the other end of the hall then turned down yet another corridor. Two doors stood opposite each other in the hall. "These rooms are pretty much identical. I'll leave the four of you to fight it out. Come on Nina, I'll show you were our room is," Amber said happily. She took Nina by the arm and led her back down the hall they had come from.

"Amber, what are the chances of getting lost in this place?" Nina asked wearily. All the hallways they had come down looked exactly the same and Nina had never had a very good sense of direction.

"It's not that hard. And besides, the search team usually finds anyone that gets lost within a few hours," Amber said offhandedly. Nina stopped dead in her tracks, a sense of horror growing in her stomach. Amber turned to face Nina and began laughing. "Neens, it was a joke. There's no search team and no one has ever gotten that lost in here." Nina let out a relaxed sigh. Amber took her hand and pulled her the rest of the way down the hallway. Stopping in front of yet another large door Amber turned the handle and let them both inside. "What do you think?" Amber asked excitedly as Nina walked into the room.

"Woah…"

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**Don't forget to leave reviews so Skip has lots of food to eat! You wouldn't want to be responsible for the death of a bunny now would you? Didn't think so...therefore, leave a review! The more detailed the review, the better it is for Skip. So pretty please something other than the word update. That's like feeding Skip nothing but candy, it's not healthy for him. Please and Thank You :)**


	3. House of Rules

**Woah! Two updates in a day. I'm on a roll. Who knows, maybe I will be able to get three done today. That would be a new record for me. You guys have been pretty awsome with reviewing so far. Also I'm sorry for the slowness of the story, things will start to get interesting in the next chapter. And once the action starts, I don't plan on making it stop. Lastly, I put up a poll on my profile for this story. I haven't decided what other pairings I want so please PLEASE PLEASE go and vote. It would make things much easier for me. Don't forget to leave a nice review! Peace out.**

**~Wolfie**

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Chapter 3 House of Rules

"Wow Amber," Nina whispered. "This is very, un-you." Nina had expected the room to look like a Pepto-Bismol bottle, or a wad of bubble gum but it wasn't at all. The room was decorated with red, green, brown and gold. In fact, there wasn't a speck of pink anywhere in the room. It had a very similar layout to the room Mara and Patricia had—two king sized beds facing each other each with a large dresser. A sitting area with plush chairs was tucked neatly away into the corner of the room with a fireplace against the wall.

A light breeze came through the room and Nina noticed that a door leading to a balcony was slightly ajar. Nina crossed the sleek marble floor and pushed back the curtain. The balcony was gigantic; it was probably bigger than her room back in America. "It's got a great view doesn't it?" Amber asked coming up beside Nina. She nodded and looked out over the area. Beyond the edge of the estate Nina could see little white buildings all clustered together. The area was surrounded with small trees and everything looked so surreal. Past the town, rising high up into the air was what looked like a castle.

"What is that Amber?" Nina asked pointing to the large building in the distance. It wasn't quite like an English castle. This one seemed to be built right into the rock. From what Nina could tell, most of it was crumbling down and the whole area looked very old.

"The acropolis. There are a bunch of ruins up there, a temple to Athena and a lot of it is an old castle. My dad is one of the people in charge of its excavation," Amber explained. Nina stared up in awe at the monument before her. She couldn't believe that she would get to look at it for the next month. A soft knock at the door recaptured Nina's attention. The door opened a crack and a petite woman walked in. Her dark hair was pulled back into a bun which revealed graying roots.

"Miss Millington, your father wanted me to inform you that lunch will be served on the back terrace in ten minutes. He said not to be late," the woman said. A smile was on her face but to Nina it looked a little forced. She looked at Nina and her dark eyes narrowed.

"Thank you Leto. I'll get the others on my way down," Amber called. The woman nodded and backed out of the room. Nina stared at the spot she had just been and shuddered. There was something creepy about that little old woman. "Come on Neens. Let's get going." Amber linked arms with Nina and led her down the hall. They reached the hallway where the guys were staying and Amber knocked on one of the doors. A second later Fabian opened it and smiled at the girls.

"So what's up?" he asked.

"Lunchtime. Is Mick ready?" Amber asked. She peeked around Fabian, trying to see if Mick was ready.

"I'm here, I'm here," Mick said. He came up behind Fabian and pulled the door shut behind him. With a satisfied smile Amber turned around and knocked on Jerome and Alfie's door. When there was no answer she knocked again, louder. Still no answer. With a huff Amber threw open the door and stormed into the room. Alfie and Jerome were passed out on top of the beds snoring loudly.

The four teens stood there in surprise. "So how do we get them up?" Fabian asked.

"Like this mate," Mick said with an evil grin on his face. "Hey guys! There's food downstairs being served by girls in swimsuits!" Mick yelled. With a loud thud both Alfie and Jerome fell off the beds and darted their heads in all directions around the room.

"Did you say food?" Alfie asked excitedly.

"And girls in swimsuits?" Jerome finished. Mick glanced back at Amber, Fabian and Nina and the three of them burst out into laughter. Jerome and Alfie gave them puzzled looks but then Jerome's expressions changed to one of annoyance. "Not cool Campbell. Never joke about girls in swimsuits," he said irritably. Mick rolled his eyes and walked out of the room.

"He was partly right. There is food. Lunch is ready. Come on, we have to go get Mara and Patricia," Nina said. Reluctantly the two boys followed Amber out of the room and they made their way to the last room. The two of them were already waiting outside the room when they got there.

"Some lady with an apron knocked on our door and said that you guys would be coming soon," Mara explained when she saw the confused looks on everyone's faces. Amber nodded with an understanding look on her face. She led everyone back down to the foyer. Along the way Nina tried to memorize the route they took, knowing that at some point she would have to walk these halls by herself.

They all reached the ground floor and Amber led them through the living room they had passed and out onto the back patio. A large table for ten was sitting on the stone patio. Mr. Millington was already sitting there and next to him was a woman Nina guessed was Amber's mom. Nina was surprised though, if this was her mom, Amber looked nothing like her. The woman before her had bright red hair pulled back into a neat bun, blemish free pale skin and sharp green eyes. Mick, who was walking in front of Nina, froze in his tracks. Nina hadn't been expecting it and she walked straight into him. "Mrs. Mrs. Mrs. Millington, how have you been?" Mick stammered. Nina sidestepped around Mick and went to take a seat next to Amber.

Mrs. Millington took a sip of her drink and stared at Mick. "Mick, what a pleasure it is to see you again. How have you been?" she asked slowly.

"I've been very well Mrs. Millington. Yourself?" Mick responded politely. He sat down in the farthest seat possible from Mrs. Millington and took a few deep breaths. Mrs. Millington opened her mouth to speak but her husband held up a hand to silence all conversation.

"My dear guests I must again say what a pleasure it is for all of you to join us here. Before we enjoy our lunch there are a few rules I would like to go over with you. First off, third floor and my office are strictly off limits, as are the servants' quarters. Meals will be served at eight, twelve and five promptly and I suggest being on time or else you will miss out on some delicious cooking. If at all possible I would like everyone to be in bed by eleven o'clock every night. Lastly," Mr. Millington paused to stare at Alfie and Jerome, "We have quite the reputation on this island so I ask that you do not do anything that would tarnish that reputation. If you have any other questions you may ask my head of house Leto or Philip. Now, let's all enjoy this meal." He gestured to the food that had been placed on the table while he was speaking.

While there wasn't anything overly fancy on the table, all the food looked delicious. There was a large spread of fresh vegetables and fruits, a basket of bread and also bowels of salad greens. Pitchers of iced tea and lemonade were being passed around and everyone was placing food on their plates. Nina made herself a salad and poured herself a glass of lemonade. Everyone talked softly amongst themselves for a while, almost afraid of speaking too loudly.

Nina got the feeling that someone was staring at her so she looked up to find Amber's mom looking at her with a puzzled expression. "You must be the American girl Amber has told me about," she said calmly.

"Yes ma'am. I'm Nina," Nina said as politely as she could. Amber's mom didn't respond, instead she turned to her husband and began talking to him in a hushed voice. Next to her Fabian gave her a sympathetic smile.

"Don't take it personally. She's like this to everyone," he whispered. Nina smiled and nodded. Everyone finished eating and Mr. Millington got up from the table and walked away. Shortly after Mrs. Millington got up and followed him into the house.

"So, what is everyone going to do until supper?" Amber asked breaking the silence.

"Sleep," Jerome called out. Alfie nodded and the two of them jumped up and headed back into the house. Patricia rolled her eyes and took another sip of her drink.

"I really wanted to admire some of the statues in the garden. Patricia, would you like to come?" Mara asked. With a shrug Patricia got up and followed Mara down the stone steps that led out into the gardens behind the house. Amber, Nina, Mick and Fabian all looked at each other and started laughing.

"Patricia is going to come back in a horrible mood," Nina said while gasping for breath.

"Oh I know what the four of us can do! We can go down to the beach," Amber exclaimed. "It's absolutely beautiful down there." Since no one else had any other suggestions they got up from the table and followed Amber across the back lawn towards the water.

Nina was looking at all the plants and statues as they walked along and she didn't notice Fabian come up beside her. "I want to go up to those ruins. That's what I've wanted to do since we got here actually," he said. Startled, Nina jumped, didn't look where she was going and almost fell flat on her face. "Are you ok?" Fabian asked. He grabbed her arm to steady her and looked at her with a worried expression.

"Yeah. This is what I get for not paying attention. So, what were you saying about the ruins?" Nina asked. Fabian smiled and the two of them continued to walk behind Amber and Mick.

"If we're allowed to go up to the ruins would you like to come with me Nina?"

"That would be fun," Nina said happily. Just like Fabian, those ruins had been intriguing her ever since she saw them from the helicopter. At the time she hadn't known what they were but now she was fully intrigued.

They reached the beach and Amber was walking through the sand barefoot with Mick. "Have you noticed that we always seem to be most entertained by really old things? Old Egyptian myths, old Greek ruins, I think it's strange sometimes," Nina pondered. Fabian laughed and looked back up at the ruins. There was something mysterious about them. It was almost like they were hiding an ancient secret that was just waiting for the right people to come along and discover it. Neither Fabian nor Nina could wait to see what history those ruins were holding.


	4. House of Cars

**Le gasp! Three chapter updates in one day? This is a record for me. To honor this occasion I shall give all people who read this with virtual cookies and virtual cake to anyone who leaves a review. And if I really like your review I'll give you virtual ice cream as well. So I recommend leaving a review hehehe. Oh and in case I forget this in the future, which I'm sure I will I have so far this story, I don't own HoA or any of its characters that are seen or mentioned in the show. Philip and Leto are mine, as are any characters not found in the show. Just thought I'd point that out. Oh and the plot is mine too so please don't steal it. Thank you. With that- onto the chapter! Peace out.**

**~Wolfie**

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Chapter 4 House of Cars

The next day the eight teens ate breakfast alone. Leto had said that Mr. Millington was very busy with work and Mrs. Millington had eaten an early breakfast. "Amber, does she ever smile genuinely?" Jerome whispered across the table as the woman left the patio. Amber swallowed her crepe and shook her head.

"Not really. She's been like that for as long as I can remember. Daddy seems to like her though. So does Mum," Amber answered. Jerome shrugged and took another big mouthful of eggs.

"Amber," Fabian asked. "Nina and I were wondering—are visitors allowed to go to those ruins?"

"Oh yeah. People come to this island just to go to the ruins. I don't know why you would want to go up there though. Nothing but a bunch of old crumbling rocks. It's not very interesting."

"I wouldn't say that Princess," Mr. Millington said as he came out onto the patio. "Those ruins are quite intriguing. Up there is a monument to the Greek goddess Athena, and that castle is the castle of the Knights of St John. Personally, my favorite part is the Athena temple though. Do you kids have an interest in the ruins?" Fabian, Nina and Mara all nodded while everyone else shook their heads. "Why don't I set up a tour for the three of you then? I can get Philip to take you all up."

"That would be great Mr. Millington. Thank you so much," Mara exclaimed. Mr. Millington flashed a smile and walked away from the group.

"Mara, since when were you interested in archeology?" Alfie asked.

"Well I'm not necessarily interested in archeology but I do find it fascinating that people were able to build such grand places with the most basic tools. This place is a part of history and I would like to see it for myself," Mara explained. Alfie shook his head in disgust and got up from the table. Jerome grabbed a final piece of fruit and followed him back into the house.

Everyone else finished eating and began to wander away from the table. Nina and Fabian found themselves wandering around the hallway talking about the ruins. "Hey if we're going to be going up there I have to go change. Want to meet me downstairs in ten minutes?" Nina asked. Fabian nodded and started to head back to his room. Nina opened her door to find Amber dancing around their room to her MP3 player.

Nina stood there and watched Amber with an amused look on her face. Eventually Amber turned and squeaked in surprise when she saw Nina standing there. "Nina, don't sneak up on me! You nearly gave me a heart attack," Amber exclaimed.

"Sorry Amber. I just came up here to change for when Fabian, Mara and I head up to the ruins," Nina answered. She opened her dresser drawer and began looking around for something that she could hike around in.

"I could help you pick something out," Amber offered.

"Thanks but no thanks Amber. I'm not looking for anything fashionable. Practicality is the way to go in this case," Nina retorted. She pulled out a pair of jean shorts and a pale yellow tee-shirt. "This will work." Nina took her change of clothes and went into the bathroom that was attached to their room. Nina emerged from the bathroom and Amber gave her a disapproving look.

"Neens, that's so boring," Amber whined dragging out the so much longer than it needed to be. Nina shrugged, slipped her tennis shoes on and walked out the door. As she made her way down to the flyer Nina almost tripped on her untied shoelace. When she stopped to tie it she heard voices coming from the other side of a door. The door to Mr. Millington's office.

"Sir what do you want me do to? If she find out it could ruin everything," a worried voice said.

"Leave her to me. Proceed with what you think is best," Mr. Millington's loud voice responded. Forgetting about the untied shoe Nina scooted closer to the door, trying to hear all of the conversation. From behind Nina, someone cleared their throat very loudly. Nina jumped and spun around to see Leto standing right behind her, arms crossed and a frown on her face. When she frowned it was very easy to see the age lines that were forming in the woman's forehead and around her mouth.

"I-I was just tying my shoe," Nina explained. She gestured to her untied lace and the older woman glared menacingly at her. As quickly as she could Nina tied her shoe and ran down the hallway as fast as she could. Fabian was waiting for her at the bottom of the staircase as he said he would be.

"There you are I was starting to think…hey are you ok?" Fabian asked. Nina kept checking over her shoulder, making sure that no other creepy maids were going to sneak up on her.

"Leto scares me more than Victor," Nina finally said softly. "I was tying my shoe outside Mr. Millington's office and I heard him talking to someone about someone possibly ruining everything. Then all of the sudden Leto appears behind me and death glares me." Before Fabian could respond Mara bounded down the stairs and smiled at the pair.

She had changed from her pale blue sun dress into tan shorts and a bright green t-shirt. "I can't believe we get to go to ancient ruins! This is so exciting. Philip is on his way down, he said he had to grab his keys," Mara said excitedly. Nina looked at her usually calm and collected friend and couldn't figure out what was making her so hyper.

"Mara, did someone spike your drink at breakfast or something?" Fabian asked taking the words right out Nina's mouth. Mara giggled and started to walk towards the front door. With a small shrug Fabian and Nina followed behind. A few minutes later Philip walked out, looking rather flustered. When he saw Nina, Mara and Fabian he smiled and beckoned them to follow.

A midnight blue Lincoln Town Car had been brought up to the front of the driveway. Philip grinned and unlocked the doors. "This car is my baby," he explained. "It took years of hard work but I was finally able to buy it and I've been modifying it ever since. One of you can sit up front if you'd like." Mara opened the front passenger door and Fabian and Nina slid into the back seats. The leather interior had been custom designed—they were black with an electric blue stripe running down the center. The windows were heavily tinted and as Nina looked around the car she counted fifteen different speakers.

"Now this is a car," Fabian said in awe. Mara turned to face Nina and the two girls rolled their eyes.

"Boys and their toys," Nina muttered. Mara nodded and turned back to face forward. Philip started the car and revved the engine. Soon they sped off down the driveway and began heading through the town. Saying Philip wasn't the most careful driver would be the understatement of the century.

At some point Nina thought he was going to hit one of the open air stalls in the town and she squeezed her eyes shut. Just when Nina thought she was going to break out into a panic, the car slowed to a stop. Opening her eyes ever so slightly Nina saw the towering wall of the castle in front of her eyes. As her breathing became steadier Nina realized that she was clutching something tightly. "Sorry Fabian," Nina apologized when she realized she was death-gripping his arm.

"It's ok," he said back with a small smile. Nina released his arm and unbuckled her seat belt. Fabian opened the car door and climbed out. He extended his hand to Nina who took it and tried to hide her blush as he helped her out of the car.

"All right guys I have to get going. Mr. Millington needs me to run errands. When do you want me to pick you up?" Philip asked from the driver's window.

Nina, Fabian and Mara all looked at each other nervously before simultaneously saying, "Its ok, we'll walk back." Philip shot them a confused look but shrugged. He turned his car around and sped off down the hill.

"OK so we all agree to never get in a car with Philip again. Agreed?" Mara asked in a hushed voice.

"Agreed," Nina and Fabian responded. Mara nodded and began walking towards a crowd of people standing by an overlook. Before she got too far away she turned and called, "You guys don't have to wait for me. I'll catch up with you later!" Nina and Fabian exchanged glances but decided to do what she said. The two of them looked up at the acropolis, unsure of where to explore first.


	5. House of Weirdness

**I'm sorry everyone but this chapter is on the shorter side. I'll make up for it though by having a longer chapter in a little while. I have another snow day today so there's a chance I'll get another chapter up today. Don't count on 3 updates today, I got a late start writing today. A big thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far. I hope everyone is liking this story and I'm really REALLY sorry about how long it's taking for things to get going. The action is starting to pick up though. And if any of you have a prediction or a question leave a review or PM me and I'll get back to you as soon as possible. I already have one reader who is going all out with research (you know who you are) and I love hearing all the predictions you guys have. So keep them coming! That's all I have to say for now. Peace out.**

**~Wolfie**

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Chapter5 House of Weirdness

Amber hadn't been kidding about people coming to just see the ruins. There were people from every walk of life exploring the ruins. In the main arrival area alone there were almost as many people as there were students back at their school. Fabian beckoned for Nina to follow him and they walked under a large stone archway. On the other side there was an information kiosk where a line of people were standing. "Looks like we have to pay to get in," Nina observed. The line moved pretty quickly so Nina and Fabian were able to pay and get a map of the area pretty easily.

"This is amazing," Fabian exclaimed as he scanned the information on the back of the map. They followed the flow of the people down to another overlook that stood before the town below them. Nina pulled a camera out of her bag and snapped a few pictures of the city. Off to the side Nina noticed a woman in hiking gear giving a tour to a group people. Most of the people though were exploring the area for themselves.

Squinting her eyes Nina tried to look for Amber's house. Nina finally spotted it a little ways off, at first it had been hard to see because it was white, just like the other buildings. "Fabian look, I can see the house from here," Nina pointed out. Fabian looked up from the map and followed Nina's line of sight to where the house was.

"Nina! Fabian!" The two turned to see Mara jogging towards them. "Isn't this place beautiful?" she asked. Nina nodded and looked around once more at the ruins they were standing in. Down a short flight of stairs was another platform where many people were gathered. Running down the stairs was a row of tall stone pillars. Nina jogged down the stairs and looked out past the tall stone wall that stood at the base of the platform. She could see the town off to the side and in front of her eyes was the cerulean blue Aegean Sea. Several dozen boats with white billowing sails were off in the distance, bouncing up and down in the water. At the horizon it was hard to tell where the water ended and the sky began, the water was that blue. "I've never seen anything so beautiful."

The trio finished exploring around the base of the ruins and began the long trek to the top of the acropolis. "This is quite the climb," Fabian said tiredly. The hand carved staircase was steep and the climb had been long and tiring. The fact that it was almost ninety degrees out didn't help that much either. All three were hot and sweaty but continued to climb. Eventually they reached a narrow archway that marked the end of their climb.

"And to think, the ancient Greeks did this every day," Nina said between deep breaths. She took out a water bottle she had thankfully remembered to bring along and took a long drink. She then handed the bottle to Fabian and then he passed it to Mara.

There were fewer people at the top of the acropolis so it was easier to look around. Mara almost instantly ran off to look at a crumbling wall that several people were standing around. Fabian and Nina slowly made their way around the ruins. Nina tried to imagine what everything looked like before, when it had been newer. "Check this out Fabian," Nina called. She pointed to a grand staircase that was on the far side of the area. "I wonder where this leads."

"This says it's called the Stairway to Heaven. Let's go check it out." Nina looked back at Mara who was busy looking at an inscription on a wall. With a grin she took off up the stairs with Fabian at her heels. The staircase was narrow and steep but soon Nina and Fabian were able to see the top. Surprisingly, there weren't as many people up here. A few small clusters of people were scattered around here and there, looking at the remains of an old building.

The roof had collapsed long ago, as well as much of the main walls. At some point people had tried to restore the building because a new stone wall had been built up a little higher than Nina. Four columns stood at the entrance, two of them freestanding and the other two supporting what had been a piece of the roof. "That's the temple to Athena. According to this it was built in three hundred BC," Fabian stated. Nina nodded in understanding. It was a sight to behold. But not even the splendor of the building could take away from the main site of this area.

A long D shaped covered hallway, lined with dozens of columns that supported a roof stood before them, on the edge of the cliff. The back wall had five different holes cut out in it that led to a massive balcony. "According to the map, that is the Propylaea. Let's go check it out." Nina and Fabian walked through one of the massive archways, marveling at the height of the structure. They crossed the hallway and passed under one of the five stone doorways along the far wall. The balcony was practically empty. At one end was a family of four taking pictures of the view below them. Nina walked to the very edge of the balcony and leaned against the waist high stone wall. They were so high up Nina could see the entire town and beyond.

"There's Amber's house!" Nina called. She pointed to the mansion again. It was even easier to see now that they were higher up. Far below them Nina could see the rest of the town. The buildings were all smashed up together, with the brown rooftops all blending together to make an intricate pattern of squares. Flecks of green from small trees were spread out amongst the white building, giving some color to the town of all white buildings. Squinting, Nina was able to make out the tiny shapes of people's cars that were parked on the narrow streets. She couldn't wait for the chance to walk around the town itself.

A cool breeze came in from the sea and Nina shut her eyes and let the air wash over her. "This must be what a bird feels like," she said dreamily. When Fabian didn't respond she turned to see where he was but Fabian wasn't there. Instead, standing right behind her was a wrinkled out man. He was dressed in a strange tan tunic with a wide belt around his waist. In his hand he held a long walking stick that was taller than he was and brown leather sandals adorned his feet.

Nina was so startled by his sudden appearance she let out a small shriek. The man seemed taken aback by her outburst and covered his ears in pain. From Nina's side, Fabian came running up a look of worry and confusion all over his face. The man looked at the two teens and frowned. "You should not have come here," he said in a small voice. "If you are smart you will leave the Millington house as soon as you can. You and your friends."

"How did you know we were staying at the Millington house?" Nina asked wearily. Instinctively Nina took a step back towards Fabian and wrapped her arm around his. "Who are you?"

"If you do not leave soon, all of you will be in great danger. There are things going on at this island that could change the world. All eight of you must leave, leave and trust no one until you are away from this island." The man looked straight at Nina, his blue eyes almost shaking with concern. With a satisfied nod he turned and walked back towards the temple.

When he was gone Nina let out a sigh of relief. That was one of the weirdest things she had ever seen. "Are you ok?" Fabian asked. She let go of his arm and nodded.

"Yeah, I'm all right," she responded her voice shaking. "But Fabian, clearly something weird is going on here. I think it might be time for another Sibuna meeting." Fabian nodded in agreement. He had been thinking the exact same thing.

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**Don't forget to feed my plot bunny by leaving lots of nice reviews! In return you will get virtual cookies and faster updats!**


	6. House of Food

**Allrighty I've got another chapter done! Huzzah. I'm sorry to say this but after this weekend do not expect daily updates from me. I haven't had school in three days and that's been why I've been able to update this frequently. Over the weekend I might be able to get some more chapters in but once the new week starts I might be able to get one chapter a week out. Sorry guys. I hope you'll all be patient with me while I work on this story. For some reason this was a fun chapter for me to write and I hope it's just as fun for you all to read. Enjoy. Peace out. Don't forget to review!**

**~Wolfie**

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Chapter 6 House of Food

For the rest of their time at the ruins, Nina constantly checked over her shoulder to make sure that no one else snuck up on her. After the encounter with the strange old man Nina and Fabian quickly left the balcony and descended the stair case. Just as they reached the bottom they saw Mara making her way up the same stairs. "There you two are. You vanished on me, I was starting to get worried," Mara said when she spotted her friends.

"Oh yeah, we were just checking out what was up here. It's pretty crowded up there. We could probably come back another day when it's not a busy here," Nina quickly lied. All her time spent lying about the Anubis house mystery had turned her into quite a convincing liar.

Mara frowned slightly. She looked longingly at the staircase but shrugged her shoulders. "I suppose you're right. Besides, we better start heading back it we want to make it home for supper," she said disappointedly. Taking one last look at the staircase Mara made her way through the waning crowds of people and began the decent down the winding staircase.

After the long and in Nina's case more difficult, journey to the entrance of the ruins all three teens were completely exhausted. "I can't believe I'm saying this but I actually wish Philip was here to give us a ride back. I'm exhausted," Fabian muttered.

"Hey you three, need a lift?" Philip's cheery voice called out. He beamed at them and opened the back door to his car.

"How did you…," Nina trailed off. If at all possible Philip's grin grew even wider.

"Call it a hunch. I know what these ruins do to people. Those stairs are murder. Hop in and I promise I'll be a bit more careful with the driving." Relieved Nina, Fabian and Mara all piled into Philip's car once again. They got back to the Millington house without anyone fearing for their lives. It was quite the surprise.

Mara let herself out of the front seat and smiled at Philip. "Thank you for the ride," she said politely. With a strange burst of energy Mara briskly jogged up the front stairs and into the house. Fabian and Nina both nodded to Philip and walked up the steps themselves.

"If I ever climb another stair again it will be too soon," Nina said tiredly. Fabian laughed and pushed open the door.

"That might be a problem Nina," he said with a laugh. He gestured to the towering staircase before them that led to the second floor. Nina groaned loudly. "You know a house this big should have like an elevator or something." Nina nodded and began to inch herself up the staircase. Every step made her legs burn with fiery pain and all she wanted to do was go up to her room, take a shower and collapse into bed. Beside her Fabian was moving just as slowly.

Eventually the two got to the top of the staircase. Below them clicking heels came pattering across the floor. "Nina, Fabian, it's almost time for supper!" Amber called.

Seeing Amber made Nina forget her exhaustion and remember what she had wanted to do when she got back. "Actually Amber, can you get Patricia and Alfie and bring them to our room? There's something we need to tell you guys," Nina asked. Amber gave her a puzzled look and Nina held up a hand in front of her right eye—their sign for Sibuna. Amber gasped, nodded and then ran off to go find the other members.

"So what do you think that was all about anyways? What that man said?" Fabian whispered. "Do you really think there's something going on here?"

"I don't know Fabian. But I want to find out." The two of them headed into Nina and Amber's room and waited for the others to show up. A few minutes later Amber cracked the door open and slipped in with Alfie and Patricia right behind her.

"What's this all about?" Patricia asked. She plopped down on one of the arm chairs in the room and looked at Nina and Fabian. Amber and Alfie sat down on the remaining seat and looked at the pair as well. "Amber said something about it involving Sibuna."

"It does. Something weird is going on guys," Nina said. "Today at the ruins, this random dude appeared out of nowhere and started going off about how we should have never come here and that all eight of us need to leave."

"Wait he said the eight of us? How did this guy know there were eight of us here?" Alfie interjected.

"I thought the same thing. Plus he knew we were staying here," Nina added. Everyone then turned to look at Amber who had spaced out slightly.

"What?" she asked. "I don't know what he could have meant. I don't know everything that goes on here. Daddy is very secretive about his work."

"What a surprise," Fabian muttered.

"This is stupid! We're not at school, there is no mystery. It was probably just some creepy old guy who makes predictions to make a quick buck. Nothing weird is going on, now if you all don't mind I'm going to get supper," Patricia yelled. She stood up and stormed out of the room. Everyone else sat in an awkward silence for a moment.

Alfie then stood up and gave Nina a sympathetic grin. "Sorry Neens but maybe Patricia is right. Maybe. Either way we'll figure it out. I'm going to head downstairs though before Jerome eats all the food." Amber nodded and followed Alfie out the room. Nina leaned forward in her seat and began rubbing her temples.

"Maybe I'm finally losing my mind," Nina joked.

"I don't think so. Nina face it, when you have one of these feelings usually you're on to something. There just might be something weird going on here," Fabian argued. Nina looked over at him and smiled. That was one thing she loved about Fabian, he always believed in her. Even when she didn't believe in herself. "Sibuna?" Fabian placed a hand over his eye and grinned at her.

"Sibuna," Nina said repeating the gesture.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Later on at dinner Mara was still going on about what she had seen at the ruins. Jerome rolled his eyes and took another bite of his salmon. "Boring. Mara, could we please not talk about something that bores me to tears?" Mara glared at Jerome for a brief moment. Suddenly from nowhere a wad of vegetables flew through the air and hit Jerome in the face. The table fell silent and watched Jerome as he shut his eyes and took a deep breath.

"Hit the deck!" Mick yelled. Everyone dove out of their chairs as Jerome picked up his entire plate of food and threw it at Alfie. This incident started a full scale food fight, right in the middle of the patio. Shrieking, Amber slid under the table. Mara tried to get away but she got hit with a wayward piece of fish. To everyone's surprise Mara then got in on the fight. Mick had smartly run from the table back into the house.

Fabian and Nina were crouched behind their chairs trying to avoid the flying food. "What are the chances of getting out of here without getting hit?" Nina yelled over the screaming. Fabian looked back and forth between Nina and the doorway.

"Slim to none. We might be able to get out to the gardens safely. Then we can wait it out."

"Works for me." The two of them got down on their hands and knees and inched their way over to the steps of the patio. When they reached the edge they jumped up and tore across the lawn. When they were out of firing range they stopped running and looked at each other. "I feel like we're back at school. But this time there's no Victor to walk in and yell about what miscreants we are." Fabian nodded and began laughing.

"No but I think they all just found something just as bad as Victor." Fabian pointed back to the patio and he and Nina watched in horror as Leto came out on the patio and started screaming at Jerome, Alfie, Mara and Patricia. "I'm glad we got out of there when we did." Fabian looked back over his shoulder towards the gardens and took Nina's hand in his. "Hey come on. Let's go check out the gardens." He tugged on Nina and as soon as they started walking he dropped her hand.

Nina looked over at him and saw his cheeks were scarlet. "Fabian are you ok?" This caused Fabian's face to redden even more. He took a deep slow breath and nodded. Nina gave him a curious look but didn't say anything.

After their walk Nina and Fabian were walking back into the house when the main door was thrown open and a man walked into the house. Dressed in an expensive looking, dark blue business suit, he had an air of formality about him. He didn't pay any attention to Nina and Fabian, in fact he would have knocked right into them if Fabian didn't pull Nina back at the last second. The man stormed up the stairs and turned left. A second later a door could be heard slamming. "Well that was rude. What's his rush?" Fabian asked as they looked up the stairs where the man had just walked.

"Don't know," Nina responded with a shrug. This place was starting to weird Nina out. She thought back to what the man at the ruins had told her. _If you do not leave soon, all of you will be in great danger. _What could he have meant?


	7. House of Sirens

** Me: Hola mis amigos! I have the next chapter here for all of you to enjoy. It's my shortest so far, but it's a pretty interesting chapter because...**

**7th grade girl: Shhh don't tell them anything yet Wolfie. I know you're excited but let them read it for themselves. **

**Me: good point. Oh and this girl with me is the little girl that showed up to Jerome and Alfie's 'auditions'. I brought her here so she could have her time in the spotlight. Take it away sweetie.**

**7th grade girl: Thanks Wolfie. Well Water Wolf 100 doesn't own any House of Anubis characters. And any resembelence to any other persons living, dead or fictional is purely unintentional. Lastly please leave lots of nice reviews. They makes Wolfie very happy. Thank you.**

**Me: All righty, on with the chapter! Peace out.**

**~Wolfie**

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Chapter 7 House of Sirens

Nina said goodnight to Fabian at the top of the stairs and started to walk down the hallway to her room. As she passed Mr. Millington's office she paused momentarily, thinking about what she had heard that morning. "Nicolas, you know as well as I do that things are getting too out of hand," an angry voice yelled. Whoever it was, it wasn't Mr. Millington.

"Darien, keep your voice down. Do you want the whole house to hear you?" a second voice whispered back. Nina recognized the second voice as Mr. Millington's. She glanced up and down the hallway, checking to make sure no one was coming and she ran and pressed her ear against the door. Part of her felt guilty about listening in on a private conversation. But, another part of her wanted answers and secret conversations at night were usually a good place for getting them.

"I think I have every reason to yell. What were you thinking when you let them come here? There mere presence here could ruin everything!"

"My dear friend, you worry too much. Amber knows nothing about the secret, and neither do her friends. They will all be perfectly safe here." As Nina heard these words she had to clamp a hand over her mouth to keep herself from making too much noise. What secret was Mr. Millington hiding? She glanced over her shoulder again to make sure Leto or any of the other maids weren't coming towards her then she repressed her ear back to the door.

"I wouldn't be too sure about that Nicholas. I spoke to Orrin earlier today and he worries for not only the safety of the clue, but for their safety as well." Nina couldn't stand hearing anymore. She backed away from the door and on shaky legs ran straight to her room, slamming the door behind her.

Amber, who was sitting on her bed thumbing through a magazine, looked up in surprise at Nina's sudden appearance. "Nina what's wrong? Your entire face is white." Amber climbed off her bed and placed her hands on Nina's shoulders. "What happened?" She repeated slowly.

Nina gulped and slowly began telling Amber what had happened, starting with when she saw the man walk into the house and ending with the how she heard Mr. Millington talking about how their lives could be in danger. "I know you guys didn't believe me before but I am almost positive something strange is going on here." Amber gave Nina a blank stare. For whatever reason, this information wasn't processing in her head. "Amber, listen carefully. I was walking past your dad's office and I heard him talking to some other guy. From what I heard I can assume that something really weird is going on."

"Daddy has people come over to talk all the time. It was probably someone from his company or maybe someone from the restoration team at the ruins. He's one of the people who fund the excavations," Amber said back. Nina groaned and walked away from Amber. That was all she was going to get out of her. But maybe Amber was right; maybe Nina was just imagining things. But the things she had heard, they were so strange. Nina shook off the feeling of dread she was feeling and quickly changed into a slightly oversized t-shirt and a pair of shorts. All of the conversations she had heard today were playing like a movie reel in the back of her head. With a frustrated sigh she went into the bathroom and splashed cold water on her face.

It had been a long day and Nina was ready to go to bed and put all of this behind her. While Nina was brushing her teeth Amber came up behind her with a grin on her face. "What?" Nina asked wearily. There was no way this could end well. Amber had her '_I want you to spill all the details_' face on.

"Soooo, where did you and Fabian disappear to during supper?" With a sigh Nina screwed the cap back on her toothpaste and led Amber over the edge of her bed.

"We went on a walk that's all," Nina said as calmly as she could. The last thing she needed was for Amber to start accusing of them secretly dating again. Nina had heard enough about that during school. "And it's a good thing we did. From what we saw Leto chewed the guys out," Nina added quickly, trying to change the subject.

"Oh yeah. She stormed onto the patio and started yelling at them about how they were disgraceful, rotten, sacks of uselessness or something like that. Then she started yelling at them in Greek. It wasn't pretty. The entire time Mara looked like she was going to die," Amber rambled completely forgetting the previous subject. Nina nodded through the entire story, silently praying that she wouldn't get back on the Fabian topic. Every time Amber started talking about Fabian, the conversation would contort itself into Amber trying to convince Nina to tell Fabian how she felt about him. Every time that conversation came up Nina gave the same answer of '_No, because we're just friends, nothing more._' For some reason the logic behind that answer never stuck in Amber's head. In Nina's mind, the sun would have to burn out before she ever admitted to anything. But in Amber's mind, telling Fabian seemed to be the only possibility.

"Amber can we continue this conversation in the morning? I'm really tired. Walking around ruins all day does that to a person," Nina said. Just to prove how tired she was she yawned and began rubbing her eyes. Amber nodded and slid into her own bed. "Night Amber." Amber nodded and switched off the lamp by her bed. As Nina settled into her bed she glanced out the window at all the bright stars above her head. Smiling, she shut her eyes and drifted into a deep sleep.

_Weeeee-ooooo Weeeee-ooooo. _A shrill sound tore through the night air makingNina and Amber both shoot up in total shock. Hitting the light on her watch Nina saw that it three in the morning. "What is that?" Amber yelled over the noise of the sound. She held her hands up to her ears and looked around the room.

"It sounds like a siren," Nina called back. She jumped out of bed, threw open the door and ran out onto the balcony. Sure enough, several police cars were making their way up the driveway. "Amber, come out here!" Nina yelled. Stumbling out of bed and almost tripping over her own shoes, Amber ran out onto the balcony to see what was going on. The cop cars had stopped in front of the house and several cops got out and ran up the stairs to the front door.

Nina and Amber looked at each other, nodded and ran out the door. On the way they ran into Mara and Patricia who looked as confused as Nina and Amber. "What's going on?" Mara asked.

"I don't know. But let's go find out," Nina responded. From behind them Fabian and Mick came running down the hall. "Where are Jerome and Alfie?"

"They're coming. We had to pound on their door to get them up," Fabian said. A moment later the last two boys came running down the hall looking completely disheveled and bewildered. Together the eight of them ran to the staircase. In the foyer there were several cops mulling around as if searching for something. Two more were standing at the front door holding their guns. The sound of sobbing was filling the air, coming from somewhere nearby.

Amber pushed past everyone else and ran straight into the living room. Everyone else followed closely behind. Sitting in one of the chairs was Mrs. Millington. Her normally neat, pinned back hair was down, sitting against the back of her head in odd angles. She was sobbing into the sleeve of a dark purple bathrobe. Standing in front of her were two cops; both trying miserably to get her to stop sobbing. "Mum! What's wrong?" Amber yelled. She ran into the room and took a seat by her mother.

"Mrs. Millington," one of the cops said slowly. "Could one of them have been behind it?" He pointed over to where Nina, Fabian, Patricia, Alfie, Mara, Jerome and Mick were all standing.

"Oh no, I don't think any of them could have done it. They were all asleep besides they're just kids," Mrs. Millington said between sobs. She took a handkerchief out of her robe pocket and began dabbing her eyes.

"Mum, what happened? Why are there cops here? And why are they accusing my friends?" Amber asked again, tears forming in her eyes. Everyone stared at Mrs. Millington as she took a deep breath.

Mrs. Millington took a hold of her daughter's hand, looked her straight in the eyes and whispered "Amber, darling, your father is…is missing." At that moment the room was so silent, everyone could have heard a pin drop.


	8. House of Messes

**I have to confess, by the end of this chapter you guys might hate me. But I couldn't resit it. You'll know what I'm talking about when you read the chapter. And today is a day to celebrate! Today I have gotten more hits than any other day since I got my account. And that's all becasue of reders like you. So this chapter is dedicated to each and every one of you. Also I must give credit where credit is due. A description of a person in a quote by Alfie was not one of my own thoughts. That credit goes to NebraeExbaren who gave me the idea through a review. Thanks Rae! You guys have all been really great with reviews and leaving predictions. I love reading them so keep them coming! So in other words-leave a detailed review! I write faster when I have more reviews. So if you want more chapters sooner, review. It's that simple. Peace out.**

**~Wolfie**

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Chapter 8: House of Messes

For several minutes no one dared to say a word. In fact, no one dared to breathe too loudly. Amber stared at her mother in shock. Her eyes resembled a bush baby, her mouth forming a perfect O. "What do you mean?" she whispered softly. Mrs. Millington reached forward to comfort Amber but she stood up and looked down at her. "Where is he?" Mrs. Millington looked over at the two cops in the room and nodded slightly.

The first one gently pushed Amber through the door and the other beckoned the rest of the group to follow him. As they walked up the stairs Nina turned back to Fabian and gave him a worried look. She still had to tell him what she overheard outside Mr. Millington's office. At the front of the group, Amber was sniffling back tears and Mick pushed past Patricia and Mara and took her hand in his. She looked at him and Mick gave her a reassuring smile. He leaned forward and whispered something in her ear.

The cops led them down to Mr. Millington's office. "Do not touch anything," the first cop said sternly. "There might be a clue in here as to Mr. Millington's whereabouts and who took him." The group nodded slowly and the cop turned the handle and pushed the door open.

Nina, who was the last one to reach the room, assumed that something serious happened by all the gasps she heard from her friends. Standing on her toes to see over Mara's head Nina was shocked to see the disarray before her.

The inside of the room was such a mess it was almost impossible to see the white floor. Five floor to ceiling bookshelves that were along a wall were toppled over; book, music albums, and pieces of ceramic figurines lay scattered all over the floor. A black and gold desk that was in the middle of the room was overturned and the drawers had been thrown across the room completely empty. The heavy brown curtains on the windows had been ripped in half and the part that was still on the curtain rod was billowing in the breeze. At some point the window had been smashed and the smell of the sea flowed into the room. Against the wall in little tiny pieces were the remains of Mr. Millington's computer. "It looks like an earthquake hit this place," Jerome finally muttered. Patricia and Mara both turned towards him and smacked him on the arm. "Ouch! Well it's true." That earned him another smack.

A few cops had pushed their way around the group and began looking over everything that was in the room. Nina's eyes quickly scanned the room and something on the floor caught her eye. When all of the cops had their backs turned she bent down and snatched it up. Her eyes widened as she looked the object over. "You kids should leave now," one of the cops instructed. "In the morning we're going to call you all for questioning."

"But we haven't don't anything," Patricia protested.

"Maybe, maybe not. You all are staying here so you will all be questioned. It's just procedure. Now I suggest all of you get going." The cops ushered them out of the room and everyone stood outside the door, unsure of what to do next. Amber stood there trying to hold back her tears. Mick and Alfie were at her side trying to comfort her. No one was really willing to go back to bed so they slowly made their way back downstairs. Mrs. Millington was still sitting in the living room crying and Amber went over to her and the two sat together in silence.

Nina, making a quick decision, tapped Fabian on the arm and whispered, "We need to have a meeting; back patio, five minutes." Fabian nodded and quickly repeated the message to Alfie. Nina tapped Patricia and said, "Sibuna meeting. Follow the guys out." Patricia gave her a strange look but shrugged. Before Nina followed her fellow Sibuna members she went over to Amber and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. Amber stood up and wrapped her arms around Nina's neck.

"Maybe you were right Neens," she said softly. Nina returned Amber's hug but eventually pulled back. With one last sympathetic smile to Amber Nina walked past her friend and went out to the patio.

Fabian, Alfie and Patricia were all sitting outside waiting for Nina when she stepped outside. She beckoned silently for them to follow her and the four walked down the steps and out into the gardens. It was a cloudless night and there was a full moon out so there was plenty of light for them to see. "What's this about Nina?" Patricia asked.  
"I don't know, that's why we need to figure this out," Nina said back. "Like I told you guys earlier; there is something strange going on here."

"Do you think it could be alien related?" Alfie asked. Everyone groaned as he grinned sheepishly.

"No Alfie I don't think so," Nina said turning to him. "After supper today Fabian and I saw this guy storm into the house. He was dressed in this really expensive suit and the way he walked in it seemed like he thought pretty highly of himself. I heard someone talking to Mr. Millington in his office and I think it was him. He said something about things getting out of hand, and that all of us being here could ruin everything. Then Mr. Millington mentioned a secret." Fabian's eyes widened as Nina continued her story about Amber dismissing the visitor as a work colleague.

"All right Nina," Patricia finally said in defeat. "Maybe something strange is going on. And let me guess, you want us to get to try and figure out what is going on."

"Well, yeah. After all I think this concerns us. The guy I told you about, the one from the ruins. He said we were in danger if we stayed here. And that other guy said that all of us being here could ruin everything."

"Nina, what's that you got in your hand?" Fabian asked. Nina held up her hand and showed everyone what she had. It was what she picked up from Mr. Millington's office. It was a golden ring. The band on it was thin but the main part it was a golden plate. Written in tiny Greek letters was some sort of inscription.

Nina passed it to Fabian who looked closely at the lettering. "I found it on the floor in Mr. Millington's office," Nina admitted.

"Why would you take something from the scene of the crime?" Patricia yelled.

"Call it a hunch." Patricia shrugged, accepting Nina's logic. On more than one occasion Nina's hunches had helped them solve the mystery at Anubis House. Alfie took the ring from Fabian and held it up in the moonlight.

"It looks familiar for some reason. I think I saw it on the guy that came to the house after supper. I know I saw a ring on his finger, and I remember it being gold so this could be it," Fabian pointed out.

"So Mr. Fancy Smanshy walks around wearing this old thing?" Alfie muttered. "Even I have better taste than this." Patricia rolled her eyes and snatched the ring from his hand. "Umm guys, do you think we should get back inside before everyone thinks we've gone missing too?" Alfie suggested quickly.

"Good idea Alfie. So can we all agree that this is something that Sibuna should get to the bottom of?" Nina asked. She looked at the faces of her three friends, all of them nodding with determination on their faces. "Sibuna?" Nina asked as she raised her hand to her eye.

"Sibuna," everyone responded at once. They all copied the gesture. Patricia went to hand the ring to Nina but she shook her head.

"I don't have anywhere to hide it. No pockets," she said in a hushed tone. Patricia nodded and slipped it into the pocket of her basketball shorts. Single file they all walked back into the mansion. Amber and Mrs. Millington were gone, and so were the cops.

As quietly as they could, the four teens made their way up the stairs. The door to Mr. Millington's office had been shut and police tape had been placed over it to keep people from entering. With a small wave Alfie briskly walked down the hall and turned down towards his room. Patricia looked at Nina, gave a small smile and followed Alfie down the long hallway. Nina paused in front of the door for a moment, reliving the memory of what she heard earlier that day. "How do we keep getting ourselves into these situations?" Nina asked.

"I wish I knew," Fabian muttered beside her. She turned to face him and sighed. "But hey, don't worry; everything will work out in the end. It did last time and it will this time." Fabian reached out and gave Nina's hand a gentle squeeze.

"You're right," Nina said softly.

"And just like last time, I promise I won't give up." Nina looked up at Fabian, who had grown an inch or two in the month they had been apart. Nina now just came up to his shoulders. Their faces were so close to each other and Nina found herself staring into Fabian's bright hazel eyes. Nina felt her breath coming in short little gasps and the two of them inched forward a little bit more.

While on the outside Nina seemed calm, inside she was freaking out. Her brain was telling her to move, to do something, but her body wouldn't respond. "This is a house not a movie theatre. If you would, take yourselves and your romance elsewhere," a sharp voice snapped. Nina and Fabian both jumped so suddenly they smacked their heads against one another.

"S-sorry Leto," Nina apologized rubbing her head. "But we, we weren't,"

"I am not interested in your excuses. I want both of you return to your rooms right now." The stern maid huffed and walked past the two blushing teens without another word.

"Well, that was awkward. And slightly terrifying. And I thought Victor was scary," Fabian whispered. Nina looked back from where Leto had walked away back to Fabian. She stifled back a giggle when she saw that his entire face was as red as a bell pepper. She knew that her face was probably the same, it sure felt hot.

Nina looked back down the hall to make sure Leto, or anyone else, was coming and smiled at Fabian. "Well," she whispered, "we better get going. I've had enough weirdness for one day." Fabian nodded silently and they crept down the hall to Nina's room. With one last wave she gently turned the knob and slipped into her room. Once her door was shut Fabian smacked himself in the forehead. So close, but yet so far. He could never catch a break. With a defeated sigh he snuck back into his room before he got in any more trouble.


	9. House of Questions

**Here's chapter 9 everyone! A HUGE thank you to Purple Snowstorm for editing this for me and finding all my poor comma errors. You totally rock for this Snowy! I sadly must say this week I won't be able to update as much because I have a ton of stuff going on but I'm hoping to get another chapter out by the end of the week. Also I just thought I'd say on here that I've set up a Beta account so if anyone is looking for a Beta feel free to PM me and I'll get back to you within a day. OK thanks guys! Enjoy chapter 9! :D Peace out.**

**~Wolfie**

* * *

Chapter 9 House of Questions

Nina hardly got any sleep the rest of the night. By the time she got back to her room, the time was going on five AM. Amber wasn't in their room, so Nina figured she was with her mom. As hard as Nina tried, she couldn't seem to fall asleep, probably because all of her thoughts were on the Millington family.

Around seven, Nina decided that it was useless to try to fall back asleep. The sun was slowly coming up over the edge of the water, sending red streaks across its surface. Quickly**,** Nina changed into a pale blue t-shirt and a yellow skirt. She did not intend to really go anywhere, so a skirt seemed like something appropriate to wear.

Just as Nina reached for the doorknob, Amber walked in. She was still in her pajamas, her hair completely disheveled and sticking out at odd angles against her head. Her eyes appeared red and puffy, and Nina assumed that she had been crying. "Amber," Nina started. Before she got a chance to finish her sentence, Amber threw her arms around Nina's neck and held on for dear life. "Amber, I'm so sorry," Nina said as she wrapped her arms around her friend in a secure embrace.

"I'm afraid," Amber whispered softly. "I'm afraid I'll never see him again." Nina's heart went out to her friend. She had an idea of how Amber felt. A light tap on the door made Nina and Amber jump. With a creek the door pushed open to reveal Fabian, Patricia and Alfie all standing there. Nina gave a light nod and the three of them stepped in the room and joined in on Amber and Nina's hug. The five friends all stood there for a minute in silence.

Soon, Amber tried to wriggle out of the hug and everyone stepped back. She flashed a sad smile at each of her friends. "Thanks. Hey I'll meet you guys downstairs in a bit. I'm going to take a shower," Amber said softly. Everyone else nodded and stepped out into the hall.

"So, were you guys able to get any more sleep?" Patricia asked.

"I wasn't," Nina answered.

"Me neither," Fabian added. Alfie just shook his head and yawned. Together they walked down the steps only to find that no one else was down there.

"Where are Mick, Mara and Jerome?" Nina asked.

"I think they're all still in their rooms. I know Mara was," Patricia responded.

"Guys, I've been thinking. Should we tell Amber about the ring? She _is_ part of Sibuna," Fabian asked. Everyone looked at him as they sat down at the patio table.

"I was thinking the same thing, too," Nina admitted. "I'm just worried, though. She's not exactly stable right now. I'm sure she would want to help, but I don't know if she would be emotionally up for it." The discussion would have continued, but Leto appeared on the patio with a tray of assorted muffins. As she came out, Fabian and Nina both looked down at their plates as if the designs were the most interesting things in the world.

Without a word, Leto walked away. Alfie and Patricia gave the two blushing teens an odd look. "What was that about?" Alfie asked curiously.

"Nothing," Nina and Fabian snapped at the same time. This only caused them to blush more. The four ate in silence after that. For the entire time, Patricia kept giving Nina and Fabian odd looks. She could tell they were not telling them something. Patricia made a mental note to tell Mara about this. Those two had been dancing around their feelings for far too long now, and maybe now was the time to get them to do something about it.

"What's for breakfast?" Amber asked suddenly. She walked out onto the patio, freshly showered and looking slightly refreshed. She took a seat next to Nina and began scooping scrambled eggs onto her plate. Alfie, Patricia, Nina and Fabian all looked at each other and nodded in agreement.

"Amber," Nina said slowly. "There's something we all need to talk to you about. It's Sibuna related." Amber's head snapped up and she stared at Nina with wide eyes. "We think that there is something strange going on here."

"And, last night, Nina found this. In your dad's study," Patricia added. She reached into the pocket of her shorts and pulled out the ring. Reaching across the table, she dropped it into Amber's opened hand.

"We think the man who came here after supper wears this ring," Fabian ended. Amber's eyes grew wide as she looked at the ring. She turned it over a few times in her hand and studied the inscription.

"I think I've seen this before. Daddy used to wear one that looked like it. He hasn't worn it in a long time, though," Amber said. She handed it back to Patricia and took another bite of her eggs. "So, you all think that this is something that Sibuna needs to get involved with?" All eyes were on Amber as she took another bite of food and chewed thoughtfully. "If so, count me in. I want to do everything I can to find my dad." Amber looked at each of her club members and smiled widely. She held up her hand and stated, "Sibuna."

"Sibuna," everyone repeated.

"Miss Millington, there is someone here to see you." Standing in the doorway to the patio was Philip. Even though he was smiling, everyone could see the exhaustion in his eyes. He had probably been up most of the night as well. "The gentleman said he had some question to ask you about your father."

"Thanks Philip. Guys, will you come with me? I don't know if I can do this alone." Nina smiled and squeezed Amber's hand. They were Sibuna; they were in this together. The five of them got up from the table and followed Philip through the foyer and into a room that Nina hadn't noticed before. "This is the library," Amber whispered.

Philip tapped lightly on the door and pushed it open. The five teens walked in and Philip closed the door behind him. Nina took a moment to look around the library, and wasn't surprised to find that it was bigger and had more books than her local library in America. Floor to ceiling shelves lined every wall of the room, each packed full of books on probably every subject imaginable. The collection was very extensive - along each wall, there were ladders on wheels to roll up and down the rows of books. In the very middle of the room there was a large table with several chairs around it, and off to the side were a series of plush armchairs.

Sitting in one of the armchairs was a short, plump, balding man in a suit. His eyes were gazing into a newspaper and, when the door shut, he snapped his head up and looked at the five teens. He folded his newspaper and shuffled over to them. "Miss Millington, I'm sorry to say your friends must wait outside," he said in a gentle voice.

"No. My friends stay. Daddy always said that when you have to speak to someone for a meeting it is always better to bring colleagues along," Amber said defiantly. The man glanced nervously at Nina, Fabian, Patricia and Mara then pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and began dabbing his forehead.

"I really can't allow this Miss Millington. There are certain, rules that need to be followed." The nervous man began fidgeting again, almost as if he was afraid of being in the house. Twitching slightly, he began to twist a ring around his finger. Nina focused on the ring and saw that it was similar to the one she had found in Mr. Millington's office.

"Calm down Lazar. There's no need to start panicking. In a way, after all, this does concern all of them," a female voice piped in. Sitting in one of the chairs facing away from the teens was a woman that they hadn't noticed until now. She stood and smiled warmly at the Sibuna members. "Hello there, kids. My name is Adriane. You were promised answers and I'm here to give them to you. And this gentleman is my dear friend Lazar." The woman, Adriane, gently smoothed out her cream colored dress, tucked a lock of black hair behind her ear, and then warmly shook hands with each of the Sibuna members. "Have a seat, please." Adriane gestured to the chairs around the large table and sat down at the head of it.

"Adriane, I don't think is a good idea. The risks," Lazar started to protest, but Adriane held up her hand to silence him.

"I don't think Nicholas would have minded. In fact, I think he would have been glad his daughter had friends to help her with this," she replied calmly.

"What is going on? How do you both know my dad? Where is he? What are my friends not supposed to know? I want answers!" Amber yelled.

"Miss Millington, I assure you that, by the time this is over, you will have all the answers you need," Adriane replied calmly. She seemed unfazed by Amber's outburst. Nina glanced at Fabian nervously; she wasn't sure if they could trust these people. Patricia had the same look on her face. Alfie, being Alfie, wasn't really paying attention to what was going on. He seemed to be deep in thought about something.

Lazar cleared his throat and everyone looked up at him. "Your father was, well how do I put this? He was kidnapped by some people that we have been trying to keep at bay for a very long time," he said. Adriane rolled her eyes slightly and looked back at Amber.

"Did you ever hear your father mention the name Aspída?" Amber slowly shook her head and Adriane smiled. "I'm not surprised. He never wanted you to be a part of it. Aspída is a society. A special society that was started many, many years ago. Your father was a part of it, as am I, as well as Lazar here. For centuries, Aspída has been working to protect an ancient treasure and, recently, our enemies have been making moves to take this treasure. Until now, though, their efforts have been useless."

"Why?" Patricia interrupted. Adriane flashed a regretful smile.

"There are clues. Clues that hide the entrance to where the treasure is hidden," Lazar stated. "Our enemies want the treasure, and they are willing to do whatever it takes to get their hands on the clues."

"But what does that have to do with Mr. Millington's disappearance?" Fabian asked. The teenage boy was glancing wearily between the two people who apparently were claiming to be the good guys. Deep down, he had a feeling that there was a lot more to this story than what they were telling them.

Adriane gave all of them a serious look. She took a slow breath and said, "They wanted Nicholas. He-he was the only one who knew the first of the clues."


	10. House of Beaches

Let me get this straight. You two, as well as Mr. Millington, are part of an ancient society that is protecting a lost treasure? And these creeps kidnapped Mr. Millington because he had the first clue to getting the treasure?" Patricia asked slowly.

"Precisely. And if our enemies get the first clue then everything we've worked for would be a waste," Adriane said back.

"Why don't you guys just go and move the treasure?" Fabian asked.

"We-we don't know where it is. The only information that was passed down was the clue. And Nicholas was the only one who knew it," Lazar said with guilt lining his face.

"Well that doesn't seem very smart," Patricia retorted. Adriane flashed Patricia a no-duh look, which Patricia responded to with a scowl.

"So how are you supposed to protect the treasure if you don't even know where it is?" Nina asked.

"Well, that's where you kids come in," Adriane answered. "We have reason to believe that there is an object in this house that will give us the clue. It's like a fail-safe." She extended her hand over the table to show a gold ring on her finger. Nina leaned forward to examine it and she wasn't surprised to find that it was identical to the one she found in Mr. Millington's office. "Every member of Aspída has a ring like this. But, the one Nicholas owns is different. About seventy years ago the Keeper of the Clue had it inscribed onto the ring. This way, if something happened to the Keeper of the clue, the secret wouldn't be completely lost. Have any of you seen a ring like this around here?"

Out of the corner of her eye Nina saw Amber about to open her mouth. Quickly she responded, "No, we haven't." Amber shot her a puzzled look. "But we'll keep an eye out for it." Adriane sat back in her chair with a disappointed look on her face.

"So, um, is this Q&A session over? I have some big plans for today," Alfie piped in. Adriane propped her elbows on the table and began rubbing her temples. Lazar took out his handkerchief again and was slowly dabbing his forehead.

"Yes, we're done here. Keep an eye out for the ring please. Lives could be at stake if we don't get to the treasure first. If you kids find anything call the number on this card," Lazar said as he slid a business card across the table. Patricia caught it and smirked when she read it. With a flick of her hand, Adriane shooed them away from the table. Just as Fabian reached for the doorknob Lazar called out, "And a word of warning— you should be careful of your actions in this house. The eyes of Argus are everywhere**."** With a sudden shove, Alfie pushed past Fabian and burst out the door. The rest of them scurried out after him.

"OK, so that was really weird," Fabian said after he shut the door.

Amber then turned to Nina and asked, "Why did you tell them that we hadn't seen a ring like that? We found-" She was cut off by Nina placing a hand over her mouth.

"Amber, keep quiet please. We don't know who could be listening in," Nina hissed in her ear. Amber nodded and Nina took her hand off of her mouth.

"There you guys are. Jerome, Mick and I have been looking everywhere for you," Mara called from the top of the stairs. She walked down and stood by Amber. "Did you all get breakfast already? Oh and I was wondering if any of you wanted to go to the beach with me to look for shells." She looked at each of them, her eyes pleading for a response from one of them.

"I'll go with you Mara. I just need to go up to my room and grab some different shoes," Nina said. She faked a smile and Mara grinned back and walked away. "Sibuna meeting tonight after supper?" Nina whispered quickly. The four of them responded by making the Sibuna symbol. Nina nodded and ran up the stairs to change her shoes. This time she refused to stop in front of Mr. Millington's office. She quickly slipped off her flats and took a pair of white flip flops out from her suitcase and shoved them on her feet.

Nina ran down to the patio where she found Mara standing there, talking to Jerome. "Jerome, you're more than welcome to come with us if you want to," Mara said sweetly. Jerome ran a hand through his hair and grimaced slightly.

"Sure I guess. But don't expect this to become a regular thing. I just don't have anything better to do today," he answered flatly. Mara smiled, and then noticed Nina standing in the doorway.

"Ready to go?" Nina asked. Mara nodded and Jerome gave a small shrug. The three of them crossed the lawn, and made their way down to the water's edge. It was still early in the morning, so it wasn't terribly hot outside. As Mara and Jerome went down to where the water lapped against the shore; Nina stopped to look up and down the coastline.

There were two different areas to this beach. At one end perfect white sand lay untouched by tourists. Since it was still early, Nina knew that there wouldn't be too many people out. In the other direction it was a rockier coastline. Giant boulders were beaten smooth by the crashing waves from high tide. Mara and Jerome were walking up the sandier side of the beach, but Nina wanted to check out the rocks. She thought that there might be some tide pools to look at. So against her better judgment Nina went in the opposite direction from Mara and Jerome and began walking along some of the large rocks.

Slowly Nina made her way across the rocks, trying her hardest not to slip and fall into the water. "I should have brought my camera down here," Nina muttered to herself.

Several yards down from where the beach split off Nina found a small tide pool. Crouching down by its edge, Nina peered into the clear water. Inside the small pool Nina found an entirely different world. Brightly colored fish darted back and forth. Several sea stars sat at the very bottom near what Nina thought was a sea anemone. There were also several types of sea plants that Nina wasn't able to distinguish.

After Nina sat looking at the pool for a while, she decided to go back to Mara and Jerome. As she stood up and turned around, a small wave came in over the tide pool and made the surface of the rock slicker. Since Nina was in flip flops it didn't take much for her to lose her balance. Time seemed to stop as Nina felt herself fall backwards, towards the water. Nina shut her eyes and braced herself for impact, but then she felt an arm catch her around her waist and balancing her. "You shouldn't wander around tide pools alone. It's dangerous out here." Nina opened her eyes to see Philip standing above her. "Are you all right Nina?" She nodded slowly. She didn't know what would have happened if he hadn't caught her. Philip smiled as he took Nina's wrist and her back to the sand. "There, that's better isn't it?"

"Thank you. How did you get to me so quickly though?" Nina asked. She looked back at the tide pools and shuddered at the thought of what could have happened to her.

"Oh, well, um, I was, um, looking for mollusks," Philip said nervously. He showed Nina the bucket he was carrying. It was about halfway filled up with different shelled creatures. "These are mostly Mediterranean Sea Mussels. Take a look." Philip reached into the bucket and pulled out dark blue shell. Nina looked at it carefully. She had seen some of them in the tide pools. "So did you come out here all alone?" Philip asked as he placed the shelled creature back in the bucket**. **

"No, I actually came out here with Mara and Jerome. They went down the beach looking for shells," Nina replied. Nina gazed down the beach, and she eventually spotted Mara and Jerome walking towards her. Mara was carrying her shoes and it looked like Jerome was carrying the basket that Mara was using for the shells. "There they are. Philip, I can't thank you enough for catching me, but I better go meet them now. I'm sure Mara is worried." Philip nodded and flashed Nina a smile. With a wave Nina slipped out of her flips flops and ran across the sand.

When Nina got closer to Mara and Jerome she slowed down to a jog. Mara saw her and waved happily. "Nina there you are. You disappeared on us," Mara called. Nina stopped in front of the pair and panted slightly. "We were just about to go look for you."

"I was looking at the tide pools. They're amazing," Nina exclaimed. She didn't want to bring up the part about almost falling in because she knew Mara would worry.

"Well, I think we've collected half the shells on this beach. Ready to head back?" Jerome asked. He held up the bucket and stumbled, pretending that it was too heavy for him to carry. Mara and Nina looked at each other and laughed.

Reaching over, Mara took the bucket out of Jerome's hands. "If it's too heavy I can carry it for you. I have lots of upper body strength," she teased. Jerome looked from Mara, to the bucket and then back to Mara.

"Are you calling me weak?" Jerome asked slowly. As Nina watched this conversation unfold she could tell things were going to get interesting very quickly. Mara shrugged, as if to say 'ehh maybe'. Quickly Jerome flashed a smirk and snapped forward. He wrapped his arms around Mara's waist and lifted her up over his shoulder. Mara yelped with surprise, and the bucket of shells went flying. "You were saying something?" Jerome asked. With Mara still over his shoulder, Jerome began to hike up the hill to the house. Nina quickly grabbed the basket and Mara's shoes and ran up after them, listening to Mara's protests and shouting the entire time.

When they reached the house, Nina set the bucket and Mara's shoes on the patio and made her way up to her room. When she opened the door Amber, Patricia, Alfie and Fabian were all sitting in the chairs talking. "There you are. Now we can finally start the meeting," Patricia said when she saw Nina walk in. Nina took off her shoes and sat down next to Fabian.

"OK, so what do we want to do?" Nina asked. "Do we trust these Aspída people? Or do things our way?" Patricia pulled the ring out of her pocket and set in the middle of the coffee table. The five of them stared at it for a moment. As if it would give them the answers they needed.

"Maybe we should trust them. After all, they said they wanted to help, and that they work with my dad. And they know more about this treasure than we do," Amber suggested.

"Sure, let's trust them. Because that worked out so well the last time," Patricia snapped. Nina grimaced as she remembered the last person they thought was on their side—Rufus Zeno. Turned out he was about as far from their side as someone could get. "I say we trust no one, and do things our way. We didn't need anyone's help last time and we don't need it now."

"I agree. Let's just do things on our own for a while, and if we need their help then we can ask for it. But only as a last option," Fabian agreed. Nina and Alfie both nodded. They all looked at Amber, waiting for her decision.

The blond scratched her head for a moment and shrugged. "All right. We do things our way. Besides that guy, Lazar, was creepy. What do you think he meant by the eyes of Argus are everywhere?"

Nina shrugged. She picked up the ring and turned it over in her hand a few times. She then set it down and said, "I don't know. Bur for now let's just focus on the task at hand. Finding the first clue."


	11. House of Humor

**AT LONG LAST! The next chapter of House of Ellada! I have had sooooo many people ask me when I was going to update and I finally did. I would have had this to all of you last night but there was an issue with FanFiction sending stuff and email issues and basically I didn't get the chapter from my Beta until this morning, then I had school, and I had to rewrite the ending becaue I hated it and yeah...I'm finally done with it though. Sadly, this is a bit of a filler chapter. There is some nice fluff in here though for those of you who like fluff moments. To make up for the super long wait, and the fillerness of this chapter, the next chapter will be super awsome! Big things will start happening in the next chapter. That is a guarantee. Oh and for those of you who didn't know-I have an important poll up on my profile about this story and if you want to have a say in some things that happen in this story I recommend you go and vote. Right now I have two possible ways I want this story to go and since I can't decide some inout from all of you would be greatly appriciated. OK-so I've apoligized for the long wait, gave you a heads up on the next chapter, told you about the poll, what am I forgetting? Oh yeah! 2 more things- 1 a big thanks to my wonderful Beta NebraeExabren-who puts up with all my stupid mistakes and tells me what doesn't make sense. And lastly-REVIEW! Wow this was a LONG A/N. If you read this whole thing, I dub thee with virtual cake! **

Chapter 11 House of Humor

"And how do we do that? You heard what Adriane said, the clue is on the ring. We don't know where the ring is," Patricia replied irritably. Nina sighed and ran her hand through her hair. Patricia was right; they had no leads as to where the ring might be.

"Where would your dad hide it Amber?" Fabian asked. Amber stared into space for a moment, deep in thought. She sighed and looked solemnly at her friends. "You don't know do you?" Fabian asked when he saw her face.

Amber shook her head slowly. "I'm so sorry guys. Though, I would guess he hid it somewhere he knew no one would ever find it. He was very good at hiding things."

"What about that third floor he said was off limits?" Alfie asked softly. All eyes were on Alfie, each person staring at him in shock. "What? Can't I have a good idea once in a while?" he asked. A big grin grew across his face.

Patricia smirked and turned her attention to a strange noise that was coming in from the windows. "What is that?" she asked. Nina shrugged and got up to check out the window. She drew back the curtain and suddenly started laughing. Fabian came up behind her to see what was so funny and he started chuckling to himself as well.

"Care to explain?" Amber asked.

"It's Leto. She's yelling at Jerome in the middle of the yard and hitting him with a wooden spoon," said. She took a small breath to try and regain composure. Alfie sprang up from his seat and ran over to the window. He took one look at the scene before and fell to the ground laughing, clutching his sides. Nina leaned over towards Fabian and whispered, "None of us will let Jerome live this down will we?" Fabian chuckled and shook his head.

After a little bit Alfie finally stopped laughing and sat up on the floor. "Finally. Can we please finish the meeting?" Patricia asked as she shook her head at Alfie.

"Alfie, weren't you saying something about the third floor? It might be possible. The only person that is allowed up there is my dad. Not even I know what's up there," Amber said thoughtfully.

Nina nodded in agreement as she went back to sit down. With a determined look she asked, "Do we want to check it out then? If you're going to hide something it might as well be in the place that only you are allowed to go." Everyone else nodded in agreement at Nina's logic.

Amber looked down at her shoes, obviously nervous and worried about what they were going to do, but she knew it was something they had to do. She looked up at her friends and softly asked, "So when do we go up?"

With a quick glance to Fabian and Patricia, Nina smiled and said, "I'm thinking tonight." Amber gulped, she had been expecting Nina to say that but it didn't make her any less nervous. Alfie had finally gotten up off the floor and was sitting next to Amber with the same worried look on his face.

"What if we get caught?" he asked nervously. Fabian smiled sympathetically and patted him on the back.

"Don't worry about it mate. We all have a lot of experience with sneaking around in forbidden places after lights out. We won't get caught," Fabian smiled. He paused for a moment, thinking about what he had just said. "You know, when you think about it being able to say you can do that, it really isn't a good thing." Patricia rolled her eyes and gave him a 'no duh, moron' look. Nina, Alfie and Amber all looked back and forth between the two and started laughing hysterically.

"All right," Nina finally said after she stopped laughing. "Do we all want to meet here at midnight?" Her fellow club mates all nodded and Nina raised her hand to make the Sibuna sigh. "Sibuna?"

"Sibuna," they all repeated. Now that the meeting was over, Alfie got up from his seat and sprinted out of the room, probably to go make fun of Jerome. Patricia quickly followed after him; she didn't want to miss out on any opportunities to make fun of Jerome. It was just too much fun. Nina glanced down at her watch and saw that it was already two thirty. They had missed lunch, but there was still plenty of time before dinner.

Thinking of something that she could do, Nina thought back to the tide pools. She had spent such little time down there earlier and she wanted to take some pictures. Right now might be her only chance. "Hey Fabian," she asked. Fabian, who had been looking at the ring, looked up at her. "I found something really amazing earlier today. Do you want to come see?"

"Sure," he said happily. He handed the ring to Nina and stood up from his seat. Quickly Nina hid the ring in her dresser underneath a small stack of books she had brought with her. She found her camera on her bed and quickly shoved it in her pocket.

Together the two of them left Nina's room and made their way downstairs. As they walked through the living room they passed Alfie and Jerome wrestling on the floor. Mara and Patricia were both watching with amused looks on their faces, while Amber and Mick were constantly checking around the rooms for any signs of Leto or another maid. "So what is this amazing thing you found?" Fabian asked as they made their way down to the beach. Nina grinned and pointed over to the rocks where the tide pools were.

"It's over there. You'll see when we get there," she replied. The beach was a lot more crowded than it had been in the morning—colored umbrellas and beach blankets littered the sand and people of all walks of life were lounging around as they enjoyed the perfect weather. As Nina and Fabian reached the sand they could hear the sounds of shrieking people as they were tossed around in the waves. Nina made a mental note to go swimming in the ocean before they left Greece.

As they reached the rocks, Nina was pleased to see that they were relatively empty. "Come on, we're almost there," Nina called as she stepped onto one of the rocks. She tested the surface of the rock before she took another step forward. She certainly didn't want a repeat of this morning. The cluster of tide pools came into view and Nina happily sat down in front of the closest one and stared into it.

Fabian gasped softly when he saw the miniature world below him. "Told you it was cool," Nina said with a grin. She smiled up at Fabian and then pulled out her camera. She snapped several pictures before a small wave came in and washed many of the little fish back out into the ocean.

"Nina, check this one out!" Fabian called from a nearby tide pool. Nina made her way over and took pictures of that tide pool, and then the one after that. The pair continued to do this for quite some time. It wasn't until they realized they couldn't see the sand of the beach anymore that they stopped looking at tide pools.

"We went way farther than I thought we were going to," Fabian muttered as he looked down the rocky coast. He could only just see the top of the Millington's mansion and the actual beach was nowhere in sight.

"If we don't head back now we're going to miss supper," Nina observed as she glanced at her watch.

"Then let's get going." Going back seemed to take twice as long as heading out; which was something Nina wasn't enjoying at all. As the beach started coming into view Nina heard the roar of a wave beside her.

"You've got to be kidding me," Nina yelled. Fabian turned to see the wave come towards them and the two only had time to brace themselves as the icy cold spray washed over them. The force of the spray and the slipperiness of the rocks made both Nina and Fabian fall back on their butts. For a moment they sat there, sputtering and laughing like fools.

"Too bad that doesn't count as a shower," Fabian joked as he shook the water out of his hair. Nina laughed as well. At this point she was more or less drenched from head to toe—there was water dripping out of her hair and her t-shirt was sticking to her like a second skin.

Nina found that being wet made walking on the rocks even more difficult than before. On several occasions Nina slipped and almost fell down in a crack in the rocks. "This is ridiculous!" Nina exclaimed after slipping for the fourth time. With a grin Fabian scooted over to the rock where Nina was still standing.

"Here," he said. He extended his hand towards Nina and she grasped hers in it. Carefully Fabian helped Nina cross the remaining rocks until they finally jumped off the last one and into the burning afternoon sand.

"So what time do you think we should all meet up?" Nin asked as they made their way up the beach towards the house.

"I was thinking around midnight, maybe a little later," Fabian suggested.

"Yeah, that would give us enough time to check out the whole area. I'll mention it to the others after we eat." Nina and Fabian had left the beach and now were crossing the lawn up to the main house. In the distance Nina could hear the sound of laughter so she knew something interesting must have happened while they were gone. They were nearing the edge of the patio when Fabian stopped and grabbed Nina's wrist.

With a puzzled look on her face, Nina turned to face him. Fabian's face was about as red as it could get and he was taking deep breaths. "Nina, there's something I really need to talk to you about. I-I just can't let this go any longer," Fabian stated slowly. As Nina watched Fabian, she thought he looked like he was about to pass out or something. Fabian opened his mouth to speak when an ear piercing scream cut him off.

"What was that?" Nina yelled as she whipped around. Fabian shrugged and together they ran off towards the house. Sitting in the living room were Amber and Mick. In Mick's hand was an empty plate, and on Amber's dress were the contents of that plate.

"Ambs, I am so sorry this happened! I was carrying this out to the patio and I tripped. I just am so sorry about all of this," Mick apologized. Amber held up her hand to silence him and without saying a word, she walked past him and up the stairs. On her way she passed Alfie and Jerome who both started laughing.

Nina looked at Fabian sadly and said, "I know you wanted to tell me something Fabian but I think I should go check on Amber. Make sure she doesn't, you know, come back down wielding a big club or anything. Can you tell me later?" Fabian shrugged and nodded at her. With a sympathetic smile Nina ran past Fabian and followed Amber up the stairs.

As Fabian watched Nina run up the stairs he ran a hand through his still wet hair and sighed. Mick, who had set his empty plate down on the coffee table looked over at him and smirked. "What?" Fabian asked when he saw his friend's grin.

"Having a heart to heart with Nina huh?" Mick asked. "Very interesting." Fabian felt his face begin to flush and he quickly tried to come up with a comeback.

Absolutely no words would come to Fabian's mouth so he did the next best thing. He ran out of the room. The last thing he wanted was confrontation with Mick about how he felt about Nina. That was a conversation he didn't want to have with Mick. As Fabian escaped to the safety of his room, he realized how frustrated he was with himself. Once again, he had let another opportunity to tell Nina how he felt slip through his fingers.

Back downstairs, Mick sat on the couch laughing to himself about his friend. Fabian liked Nina more than he let on. It was obvious, it was painful. If only Fabian could find the nerves to actually say something to poor Nina. With a shrug, Mick leaned back and waited for everyone else to come down for supper.


	12. House of Sneaks

**Hello my dear readers! I FINALLY have a chapter for you to enjoy. I would have posted it last night but there were some issues with emails and getting things back from my Beta. Technology hates me sometimes, I swear. I'm sorry it's taken me so long but I had to deal with these demonic things called midterms that take up all of my time! How dare they! But now I'm on Spring Break and inbetween doing homework and going through the stack of books I recently got I will come out with another chapter. I wante to thank you all for beign so patient and a huge thank you to a reviewer named Grace for being my 'number one fan'. I dedicate this chapter to you and I'm sorry that I was never able to respond to any of your awsome reviews. They did make me feel very happy inside, and bad at the same time since I never had time to actually sit down and write. All right, you've all waited long enough-enjoy the chapter! SIBUNA!**

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Chapter 12: House of Sneaks

As if some miracle had descended down on the house, everyone got through supper without any problems. Alfie and Patricia only teased Jerome about getting in trouble with Leto for about fifteen minutes. Nina was sure that the taunting would have gone on for hours. The best part of the meal was that no food was thrown.

Once everyone was finished eating, the group began to disperse through the house and the grounds, all off to do their own thing. Nina and Fabian exchanged knowing glances and quickly snuck up to Nina's room. "OK. So, we need a plan of action for tonight," Nina stated as she shut the door behind her. Fabian nodded and was just opening his mouth to answer when the door swung open and Amber stepped in.

"Hi guys!" She called cheerfully. "So, what's the plan for tonight?"

"We were just about to talk about that. I think we should all meet up here and then sneak up to the third floor together," Nina suggested.

"Wait all of us are going? I thought it was just going to be the two of you and Patricia," Amber interjected. Fabian glanced over at Nina and rolled his eyes ever so slightly.

"No Amber. All of us are going up. The more people we have the easier it will be to search for the ring," Fabian explained slowly. Nina nodded and looked at Amber, trying to figure out if the blond understood what was going on.

"OK, I'm confused. We're all going up to the attic to look for the ring. But, we have a ring already so why are we going to go look for another one?" Amber looked at Fabian and Nina, hoping for an explanation. Fabian smacked himself in the forehead and Nina slowly began rubbing her temples.

"Amber, keep up. I'm only going to say this once," Nina said slowly and sternly. "We have to go to the third floor to find a ring that looks like the one I found the other day. We have to find it because the one we have is not the right one, it doesn't have an inscription on it. Adriane had a ring just like the one I found, Lazar had one too. It's a symbol of their group and the one your dad has is the one we need. The other one belongs to someone else, but we don't know who yet."

"Ohhhh, I get it now. Why didn't you say so before? I mean really, is it that hard to explain something simply? Not all of us understand your super secret language of sneaking around and solving clues. Some of us have more important things to think about," Amber stated as if it was the most obvious thing to say. This only caused Fabian to clench his fists and grit his teeth to prevent him from yelling. He took a deep breath and forced a smile on his face.

"We'll be sure to make things clearer next time Amber," he said. Amber grinned and proceeded to pick up a magazine from her end table and skim through the pages.

Nina shook her head slightly and turned back to face Fabian and said, "All right so now we have a plan. As long as you, Patricia and Alfie can sneak out of your rooms without any problems tonight should go pretty smoothly."

"Hopefully," Fabian agreed. "I'll go let the others know. See you two later." Fabian crossed the room and just as he reached to open the door it was flown open to reveal Patricia.

"Perfect timing Patricia. I was just about to start looking for you. We have a plan for tonight. We're going to—" Fabian started to say until Patricia held up a hand to silence him.

"Guys I saw something really suspicious just now," Patricia said in a low whisper. Amber scrambled off of the bed and went to stand by Patricia, Nina and Fabian. After glancing out into the hallway Patricia shut the door and turned back to her friends.

Amber stared at Patricia, impatiently tapping her foot. "Well? What did you see?"

"Well, I was coming up from the beach with Mara and-"

"Why were you at the beach with Mara?" Amber interrupted. Patricia glared at the blonde and Amber quickly clapped a hand over her mouth.

"We were bored and went for a walk. Now, as I was saying, we were coming back up from the beach and I saw Philip acting rather strangely. He was walking down from the house really quickly and he kept checking over his shoulder every few steps. And he was carrying some metal bucket with him." Patricia finished her story and looked at her friends. Amber, as expected, was not really paying attention. Instead she was twirling a lock of her hair around her finger. Fabian opened his mouth as if he was about to say something but then shut it again. Nina on the other hand, seemed to be staring into space. Something that was very unlike Nina. Her eyes were slightly glazed over and she was biting down on her lip as if in very deep thought.

"Nina?" Fabian called. "Nina? Nina!" Fabian reached out and touched her shoulder causing her to jump. "What's wrong? Are you ok?" Amber and Patricia took one look at Fabian's worried expression and smirked slightly at each other.

"Yeah. It's just, earlier today I saw Philip down by the tide pools. He was carrying a bucket. And he seemed really nervous about something. I have a bad feeling about this."

"No. We can trust Philip. He's worked with my father for a long time. He's like, the coolest person in the world," Amber argued. "He wouldn't be doing anything bad or evil. He's not Victor. Daddy trusts Philip and so do I." Amber crossed her arms and glared at Patricia and Nina, almost as if she was daring them to suspect Philip again.

"Look guys, arguing about this isn't going to get us anywhere. Right now we need to focus on the task at hand. Getting up to the third floor," Fabian reminded. Amber lowered her arms but continued to look back and forth between Nina and Patricia.

Ignoring Amber's stares, Nina looked at each of her friends. "Well we have a plan. Let's just hope it works. Someone needs to fill Alfie in on everything. We just need to keep under the radar until tonight. Sibuna?"

"Sibuna." Patricia and Fabian both headed out of the room, leaving Amber and Nina standing there.

"Amber?" Nina asked, turning to her friend. "I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to accuse Philip. He's been so nice to us and I don't think he's bad at all." Amber beamed at Nina and wrapped her arms around her.

"Oh Nina, you know I can never stay mad at you, or at anyone else for that matter. Well except for those crazy people who threatened to kidnap Victoria Beckham. I simply cannot forgive them." Nina gave Amber a puzzled look and shook her head.

For the rest of the evening, the Sibuna members spent their time like they normally would. Patricia and Amber watched a movie with Mara. Alfie snuck off with Jerome somewhere; everyone suspected that they were off plotting for a prank. Nina and Fabian were, as usual, sitting around reading. "Hey Fabian check this out," Nina called. She placed her book down on the table and Fabian got up from where he was sitting and looked over her shoulder. Nina pointed to a picture of an island.

"Is that?"

"Yep. It's the acropolis. According to this book a group of people called the Dorians came here and built the temple for Athena. For a long time the people were left in peace until the Romans showed up. They took over the island and used it for their own needs. Part of the acropolis was turned into a fortress against the Ottomans, which we saw when we were up there." Nina paused for a moment and turned the page. "But here's the most amazing part. When the Romans came they brought some sort of treasure with them and they hid it here on the island. A group of Dorians were able to find it, and then they took it and hid it themselves."

"What was it?" Fabian asked in awe as he stared at the page.

"No one knows. The Romans never tried to get it back, and the Dorians never spoke of it again. Whatever it was, it must have been important or else they wouldn't have stolen it." Fabina looked at Nina and she knew he was thinking the same thing that she was. The treasure that the Dorians hid on the island could be the one that Aspída was protecting. The one that Sibuna was now trying to find.

Somewhere in the house the chime of a grandfather clock went off. Nina glanced down at her watch to check the time. "It's going on ten. We better get up to our rooms." She shut the book and placed it back on the shelf she found it on. Quietly, Fabian and Nina left the library and walked up the stairs.

"See you later," Fabian called as Nina opened the door to her room. He smiled softly and vanished around the corner. When Nina stepped into her room she was that Amber was already in bed. As silently as she could Nina got ready for bed and slipped under the covers. Right before she fell asleep, Nina made sure her phone alarm was set for five minutes to midnight.

The combination of Nina's phone and a light tapping on the door woke both Nina and Amber instantly. "It's time," Nina whispered. Amber quickly slipped some shoes on and Nina grabbed her shoulder bag from under her bed.

Patricia, Fabian and Alfie were all waiting out in the hallway when Nina and Amber finally came out. "Took you two long enough," Patricia whispered harshly.

"Whatever. Come on, the stairs are this way," Amber said softly. She motioned for everyone to follow her down the hallway and turned down the hall where the boys were staying. As quietly as they could, the five of them tip-toed past the rooms where Mick and Jerome were still sleeping.

After a few turns Amber finally stopped in front of a very plain looking door. It was probably the plainest looking thing in the house. Amber reached out and turned the knob but it stayed firmly in its place. "You're got to be kidding me," Patricia groaned. "Why didn't you say it was locked?"

"It's not supposed to be. It was never locked before. I didn't even know it could lock," Amber replied back. While Patricia and Amber bickered about the lock Nina pulled a bobby pin out of her hair, stuck it in the lock and with an echoing click the lock released its hold on the door.

"Good thinking," Fabian whispered. Slowly Nina turned the knob and flinched when the door opened with a loud creak. In a single file line the Sibuna members passed through the door and began walking up the stairs. Amber, who was the last one in, shut the door firmly behind her. Unfortunately, she didn't notice that someone was standing at the end of the hallway, watching them go up the stairs.


	13. House of Dust

**OK so the chapter is FINALLY here. I'm so sorry about this everyone, my beta and I were experiencing some technical difficulties and for whatever reason I could not recieve my chapter whenever it was sent to me. But it's here now and hopefully I can write another one by the time I start school on Monday. That was I can actually meet my goal for the week. But again, really sorry about the wait. I know some of you have been waiting a while for this and I thank each and every one of you. I hope you enjoy this chapter and I look forward to reading the reviews you leave! Peace Out.**  
**~Wolfie**

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Chapter 13 House of Dust

"Amber would you stop walking so close to me? I'm going to trip," Patricia whispered harshly. The five Sibuna members were slowly and silently making their way up stairs to the third floor. The only light they had to go by came from Fabian's cell phone, which cast the walls with eerie shadows.

At the very top of the staircase was a large, heavy wooden door. "Well this is it," Nina whispered. "You guys ready to do some searching?"

"Maybe we should head back guys. I have a bad feeling about this," Alfie protested.

"We're already here Alfie. Besides, we have to find the first clue." Patricia said in an annoyed voice, "Unless, you want to stand guard while the rest of us search." Even though there was very little light, Alfie knew that Patricia was smirking at him.

With a quick glance back down the dark staircase Alfie then turned up to face Fabian and Nina. "Just open the door." Before Fabian got the chance to turn the knob, the door swung open on its own. With a startled squeal Amber clung onto Patricia's arm while the red head did her best to silence her.

"OK that was so scary. I don't like this idea anymore either. Alfie, why don't you and I just head back to bed and let the others look for the clue?" Amber asked hopefully.

"Amber just calm down, it was probably a draft or something. We're all in this together, so no one is leaving until we find what we came for," Fabian whispered irritably. The blonde frowned slightly but nodded in understanding.

Cautiously, the five of them stepped through the doorway and took in the sight before them. For the most part the hallway looked just like the floor below them, only everything was covered with a thick layer of dust. It was obvious no one had been on this floor for quite a while. "Any suggestions of where we should start?" Nina asked.

"Well the third floor isn't actually the size of the rest of the house. It's just this one hallway, so we don't have many rooms to check. But I don't know what is what, I've never actually been up here," Amber admitted. Patricia wheeled around to face her, her eyes flaring.

"What do you mean you've never been up here before? Really Amber! We can't search this entire place. It'll take us days!"

"What if we split up? We could go three and two and make better time," Alfie suggested timidly.

Fabian scowled ever so slightly, but then his face instantly brightened up. "Alfie that's actually not a bad idea," he said. "We can cover more ground if we split up. What does everyone think?" The rest of the group all nodded in agreement.

"All right, so how 'bout Amber, Alfie and I take the rooms to the left and Nina and Fabian can get the ones to the right?" Patricia offered. As Nina felt her face flush slightly, she realized how thankful she was for the darkness in the hallway.

"Let's do this. Everyone be careful and good luck. If you guys find something call Fabian's phone, it'll be easier," Nina instructed. The others all nodded and the five of the split up.

"Just like old times huh?" Fabian asked as they walked up to the first of the doors. Nina smiled and nodded as she thought back to the days when she and Fabian would sneak up to the attic to find clues about the cup of Ankh.

The door creaked loudly as Fabian pushed it open, causing Nina to cringe. Even though the chances of them getting caught were slim, old habits die hard and Nina didn't want to risk the close calls they had at Anubis House. Peering into the darkness Nina saw that they were in some sort of office, not unlike the one that Mr. Millington used. In the center of the room there was a large wooden desk and one wall was lined with bookshelves. On the far side of the room there was a window covered with a thin white curtain.

"So where do you want to start?" Fabian asked.

"We should probably check the desk first." They crossed the room, leaving a trail of footprints in the dust on the floor. They each opened a drawer and began rummaging through their contents. After several minutes of searching, neither of them was able to find anything.

"Well, this isn't working. Should we try somewhere else?" Fabian finally asked. Nina nodded and just as she was standing up something on the desk caught her eye.

"Fabian," Nina said urgently. "Look at this." She picked up a photo frame that was sitting on the desk and studied it. It was an older photo but Nina could still make out some familiar faces. She was instantly able to spot Mr. Millington; he was the only one with blonde hair. Standing next to him was the man that Nina had heard him talking to the night he disappeared.

"Hey, that's Adriane. And Lazar," Fabian pointed out. He pointed to the pair that had interrogated them. Adriane was sitting in a chair in front of Mr. Millington, next to a much older gentleman that looked strangely familiar to Nina. As Nina stared at the man in the photo, she knew where she had seen him.

"That's the man from the temple. The one that told us to leave! Fabian, I think this is a photo of the Aspída members." Nina studied the picture some more and sure enough, everyone was wearing the same ring that Adriane had shown them. That and all of them were dressed in some sort of strange brown tunic. It was very similar to the one the temple mad had been wearing the day he spoke to Nina.

"What do you think happened here?" Fabian pointed to the left edge of the picture. A jagged line could be seen right at the edge of the picture, where someone had torn the edge of it off. Nina opened her mouth to reply when a loud crash echoed through the entire room.

"What was that?" Nina yelled in alarm. Setting the photo frame back on the desk, Fabian and Nina both ran out of the room and tried to locate the source of the crash. From the end of the hallway Nina could see a faint glow. A glow came from a cell phone as they ran into the room to see lying on the floor, clutching his head. Next to him was a wooden shelf, and some overturned cardboard boxes that had their contents littered across the area. Patricia was standing over her with an obvious scowl on her face that the light from her phone making it even more frightening. Amber stood on the other side of the room with her hand over her mouth in shock.

"What happened?" Fabian whispered sharply.

"Well Captain Klutzy here tripped, hit the wall, and knocked the shelf down," Patricia said. She crossed her arms and huffed in annoyance. Alfie then stood up and brushed the dust off of his pajama pants. Amber, who had finally moved, stood next to Alfie to help brush some of the dust off of his shirt.

Fabian and Nina bent down to restack the boxes that had fallen off the shelf. "This is ridiculous. I mean, this room alone will take hours to search and we're going to have to search through every single box and drawer we can find. It's not like the clue is going to drop out of the sky!"

"I wouldn't be too sure about that Patricia," Nina said in awe. In the palm of her hand sat a box. A perfect sized box to hold a ring. Patricia and Amber both crouched down on the ground to get a better look at it. Carefully, Nina opened the black box and let out a soft gasp. Lying in the middle of the box was a golden ring.

"Yes! Mission accomplished," Fabian said happily. "Looks like our clue did fall out of the sky this time."

"Why couldn't it have been this easy back at Anubis House?" Nina asked jokingly. Everyone chuckled softly as Nina put the ring safely in her bag.

"All right, we have the ring so let's get this stuff cleaned up and then head back downstairs," Patricia suggested. Amber helped Fabian and Nina put everything back in boxes while Patricia and Fabian put the shelf back up on the wall. It didn't take long for them to stack the half dozen boxes on the dusty piece of plywood and soon the five of them were heading for the door.

As Alfie reached for the doorknob, Nina reached out and grabbed his wrist. "Wait!" she said in a very low voice. "I hear footsteps. Someone's coming!" Everyone was silent for a moment as they listened for the sound of footsteps. Sure enough, the sound of a single pair of feet could be heard treading down the hallway. Frantically, Nina spun around to search the room for a hiding place. On the far side of the room there was a stack of boxes about waist high. Nina motioned for everyone to follow her and they quickly ran behind the boxes and sat down on the floor.

There wasn't much space behind the boxes so the five of them were crammed close together. Nina realized that if she was any closer to Fabian, she would probably be in his lap. Just as she tried to scoot a centimeter away from him, the sound of a door opening froze her in her tracks. No one dared to breathe as someone entered the room. The light from a flashlight passed over them, but only briefly. The sound of a female voice then broke the echoing silence. "I could have sworn he left it up here."


	14. House of Riddles

**Hey everyone! I'm back from the dead! Well, I've been updating stuff, just not this story. Now that I'm done with school I'll have so much more time to write. I've had an insane past few months and I'm so glad that I get to go back to working on this. I've also had to get throguh a bit of *gulp* writer's block (Skip was on an extended vacation). I think I've made up for my absense with this chapter-there are some pretty awsome things that go down and I know that there will be something that everyone will love. So far, I think this is one of my favorite chapters. I was so excited to post this that I self beta'd it so I could get it out that much faster (Sorry Nebrae). But hey you know what? You've all waited long enough for this chapter so I'll shut up for now. Enjoy!**

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Chapter 14 House of Riddles

Nina could barely control her nerves as the unknown person shuffled through the room. She thought the thumping of her heart would give them all away. "Nicholas, why did you have to be so good at hiding things?" the woman asked again. Amber nearly jumped up in the air at the mention of her father's name. At the very last second, Alfie and Patricia managed to hold her down.

As carefully as he could, Fabian turned his body so he could look around the edge of the boxes. A split second he spun back around and stared at Nina with wide eyes. "Amber's mum," he mouthed to her. Nina's eyes grew wide as well and she could feel every one of her muscles tense up. Nina leaned toward Patricia to pass along the message.

Mrs. Millington continued to look around the room for something, occasionally muttering to herself. Nina tried to focus on taking slow, deep and silent breaths. She had to take her mind off of the fact that if any of them made a peep they would all get caught, the fact that if they got caught then they would all be sent home and lastly the fact that she was sitting so close to Fabian she could feel his chest rise up and down with his breathing.

"I won't find it tonight," Mrs. Millington finally said. "Perhaps Adriane was able to. It looks like she and Lazar came through here." With a huff, she walked out of the room. It wasn't until everyone head an echoing click from the door did they dare to move. At one time all five of them let out a huge sigh of relief.

"OK that was way to close," Patricia said as she stood up.

"Totally. Let's just get out of here before we get in any more trouble."

"Wait a minute Alfie," Amber said. "What do you guys think my mum was looking for up here?"

"Don't know. But let's talk about it in the morning. Sibuna meeting after breakfast?" Nina asked.

"No wait, Mara said something about all of us going into the town tomorrow after breakfast. She says we haven't done enough things as a group since we got here," Patricia argued.

"OK. I guess Mara is right, after all we're supposed to be on vacation together. So far we've hardly paid any attention to Mara, Mick and Jerome." Everyone else slowly nodded in agreement as they thought about the past few days here. Quietly, the group made their way out of the room and headed towards the staircase.

When they reached the bottom Nina paused momentarily with her hand on the doorknob. Fabian glanced over at her. "What's wrong?"

"I'm trying to decide if I should lock the door or not. We don't know if Mrs. Millington is still up there."

"Leave it unlocked. It was unlocked when she came up so it would be better for to leave it that way." Nina nodded and shut the door the rest of the way. After a quick goodnight, the Alfie and Fabian went into their rooms and the girls slipped down the hallway.

Patricia eased her door open slowly so she wouldn't wake Mara up. When Nina and Amber got into their room, Nina went straight to her dresser and hid the new ring with the one she had found before. Amber pulled back her sheets and snuggled into bed. "Let's just hope," she said with a big yawn, "that the clue is easy to figure out." Nina smiled and got into her own bed. She was hoping the same exact thing.

The next morning as everyone was eating breakfast; Mrs. Millington came out onto the patio and sat in an empty chair. Amber, Nina, Patricia, Fabian and Alfie all stopped eating and stared at her. The all thought she was about to say something about the third floor. Instead she warmly smiled at them and said, "Good morning everyone. I hope you all had a good night's sleep."

Fabian, who was the first to compose himself, cleared his throat and smiled back at her. "I had a very good night's sleep ma'am." Mrs. Millington nodded in his direction and struck up a conversation with Mara.

"So are we all still going into town after breakfast?" Nina asked.

"No one said anything to me about actually going somewhere. I was planning on staying right here for the rest of the day. I'm way overdue for some R&R," Jerome protested. He crossed his arms and looked at each of his friends.

"Please Jerome? We all came here to spend some time together and seven of us going to do something wouldn't be the same," Mara pleaded. She looked straight into his eyes, as if trying to plead telepathically with him. Jerome darted his eyes away from her, but looked right back. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed loudly.

"Fine I'll go. I don't want to, but I will." Mara grinned and returned to her breakfast. As everyone finished eating, they began to get up from their seats and head inside. Nina walked behind Mara and Patricia, who were talking about what Jerome had said.

"He really can't say no to you can he?" Patricia whispered.

"Don't be ridiculous. Of course he could."

"Jerome is as stubborn as a goat with an injured foot. You know as well as I do that he rarely changes his mind. And the other day, he went seashell collecting with you." Their conversation continued as they went into their room. Nina shook her head and smiled, Patricia was totally right about Jerome.

Right before Nina let her room; she went to her dresser and shoved both of the rings into her bag. Experience had made her learn her lesson about leaving important clues in her room when she wasn't home. The last time that happened, Sibuna almost lost all of their clues and Victor had found the Elixir of life. With the clues tucked safely in her bag, Nina briskly walked out of the room to meet everyone down in the entryway.

When everyone was gathered together Mara pushed open the door and asked, "Is everyone ready to go?" Slowly they all filed through the large door and into the bright morning sunlight. Philip had offered to give them a ride but Nina, Fabian and Mara had been quick to decline. The last thing they wanted to do was to get back in a car with Philip.

Fabian and Patricia fell into step with Nina, and lagged behind the rest of the group so they could sneak a peek at the ring. "So what does it say?" Patricia asked as Nina examined the inside of the band.

"I don't know. It's in Greek."

"You've got to be joking. How are we supposed to figure out the clue then?" Patricia yelled.

"We'll just have to do more research. There should be a library around here somewhere," Fabian reassured.

"Patricia! Fabian! Nina! Come on keep up! We don't have all day," Jerome yelled from the front of the group. Patricia rolled her eyes and continued walking at the same pace. Nina dropped the ring back into her bag and quickened her pace.

The walk into the village was short, but by the time they reached it everyone was starting to sweat. The sun was blazing overhead, making it impossible to see anything. Nina shielded her eyes to get a look of where they were. It was an open air market. Locals had set up stalls along both sides of the street and were all selling different goods. Some shops had food, some sold blankets and other clothing, while some had hand crafted jewelry. Past the market there were rows of tiny stores and houses. All of them made out of the same stucco-like material.

"I think Jerome and Alfie ditched us," Fabian said as he came up beside Nina. She quickly scanned the crowd and saw them heading towards one of the food stalls. "Figures," Fabian muttered.

"Come on, let's go check it out," Nina said cheerfully. The group of eight dispersed into the market and everyone spent their time the way they wanted to.

At some point, Fabian found a store that had a series of star maps for sale and since Nina didn't know anything about stars, she stood against a retaining wall to wait for him. Out of boredom she reached into her bag and pulled out the ring. She could feel an inscription on the inside of the band. "If only I knew Greek, this could be so much easier," she muttered to herself.

"That's a very pretty ring young lady." Startled, Nina jumped n the air and almost dropped the ring. "I'm sorry; I didn't mean to startle you."

"Have I seen you before somewhere?" Nina asked. The man that stood before Nina looked oddly familiar, though she couldn't place where she had seen him before.

The man before her chuckled. "Why yes, and I must apologize. When I last saw you, I was in quite the hurry and did not notice that you were standing there. I did not mean to almost run into you." Nina thought for a second, and then she realized where she had seen the man before.

"You came to visit Mr. Millington the night he disappeared."

"Yes. Nicholas is a dear old friend of mine. Now where are my manners? I am Doctor Darien Petridis. It is a pleasure finally getting the chance to meet you, Nina Martin."

"How do you know my name?" Nina asked sharply. She wondered to herself if everyone in Greece was psychic or something, because way too many people knew who she was, where she was staying and just too many other things to be normal.

"Nicholas told me all about you. He said that you have quite the love of mysteries and riddles."

"I wouldn't call it a love. I just happen to be in the right place at the right time and my curiosity gets the best of me."

"Hey Nina! You have to come see this!" Amber yelled from down the road. "I found the most adorable—oh Dr. Petridis. What are you doing here?" Dr. Petridis smiled warmly at Amber and held out his hand. Amber took it and shook it firmly.

"It's a pleasure to see you again Amber. I was just getting acquainted with Nina. I had asked her where she found such a lovely ring." He pointed to the ring that Nina still held. "It looks like a very old piece of jewelry."

"I just found it today, here in one of the shops. I'm going to give it to my Gran as a souvenir. She loves stuff like this," Nina quickly lied. Amber looked at her curiously. With her eyes, Nina warned Amber that she shouldn't say anything.

"Well it is lovely. I think your Gran will like it very much. Well ladies, I need to get going. They need me up at the dig site so I should be heading up there. It was so nice to see you again Amber. I'm sorry about your father, but I'm sure that the police will find him soon. Also, it was good to finally meet you Nina." Nina held out her hand and Dr. Petridis shook it. It was then that Nina noticed that his right hand contained a small gold ring on it. The same ring that she was holding in her left hand.

"Well, goodbye Dr. Petridis. Have a good afternoon," Amber called as he began walking away. He turned and smiled at both of them before merging into the crowd. "Well that was nice. I haven't seen Dr. Petridis in a long time. He's always busy working up at the ruins." Nina wanted to tell her that he had been at her house just a few nights ago, but right then all she could think of was the ring on the doctor's finger. He was part of Aspída as well. The only thing Nina could think about was who owned the second ring they had? One was Mr. Millington's, but why would he have two of them?

"Nina, Amber, look what I found!" Fabina ran up to them with an ecstatic look on his face. Tucked under his arm was a large red book. He stopped in front of them and held the book up to them. Written in faded gold letters were the words 'A Guide to Archaía Elláda'.

"What does that mean?" Nina asked as she took the book from Fabian's hands.

"It means ancient Greece," Amber stated. Fabian and Nina both turned to Amber in shock. "What? You should both know by now that I've got both beauty _and_ brains."

Ignoring Amber's comment, Fabian turned back to Nina and said, "The owner of the shop sold it to me. I think it'll prove to be very helpful in translating the you-know-what."

"Wait what are we translating?" Amber piped in. With a sideways glance to Fabian, Nina held up the ring that was still in her hand. "Oh the ring! Right! I knew that." Nina and Fabian both started fighting their laughter. The three of them began walking down the street, looking for signs of the others.

_CRASH!_ The sound echoed through the entire market and everyone stopped to see what had caused the sound. "Anóite! Párte apó to magazí mou!" A tall, heavy-set man ran out of one of the stores and began chasing someone down the street, screaming at the top of his lungs.

"Is that Alfie? And Jerome?" Amber asked, scanning the figures running towards them. The big man continued to scream at them as he chased the trouble makers through the streets.

"Nina scooted over towards a young woman who was also watching the spectacle. "Excuse me. Do you know that man is yelling?" she asked.

The woman turned to Nina, surprised. "Yes. He's saying 'Stupid! Get out of my shop!'" Nina nodded and went back to her friends.

"Save us!" Alfie yelled as he ran to where Nina, Amber and Fabian were standing. He and Jerome both ducked behind the three of them. The man who was chasing them stopped and glared at the two before looking at Nina, Fabian and Amber.

"Mípos aftá ta dýo aníkoun se sas?" They all looked at the man blankly. The woman that Nina had spoken to a moment ago stepped forward.

"He asked if those two belonged to you," she explained.

"Unfortunately yes," Fabian muttered. Jerome and Alfie glared at Fabian in disgust, but shrunk back when the shopkeeper stared at them. The woman repeated it to the shopkeeper. He said something else in Greek and the woman turned back to them.

"He claims that these two knocked over an entire shelf of ceramic items and they are all ruined. He said that they need to leave the market before he calls the police. And also that they need to pay for the damages."

"How much?" Jerome asked.

"He said six hundred thirty Euros." Fabian's eyes nearly popped out of his head.

"That's five hundred forty-six pounds!" Fabian yelled. Nina tried to do a conversion in her head. A pound was about sixty cents so five hundred pounds would be about… "It's about nine hundred dollars, Nina." Now it was Nina's turn to gape in shock.

"How do two people cause that much damage?" Nina screamed.

"It's a long story," Alfie admitted sheepishly.

"Just tell him that we'll get him the money tomorrow," Jerome muttered. Nina thought to herself how much trouble they'll be in when their families found out about this.

"All right. Now I think its best that you all leave," the woman said. She smiled sympathetically and then walked away with the shopkeeper, who was still muttering things under his breath. Amber huffed, grabbed Jerome and Alfie by their ears and stormed down the street, yelling at them the whole way about how embarrassing they were. Along the way, they ran into Patricia, Mick and Mara and told them what had happened. Needless to say, Mara wasn't all that happy with either of them. The entire walk home was spent with her and Amber yelling at them for being irresponsible, immature and reckless.

When they got back to the house, Alfie and Jerome managed to escape to their room. "I can't believe those two," Patricia grumbled.

"We've got bigger things to deal with. Check out what Fabian got," Nina said excitedly. Fabian pulled out the book and Patricia's eyes grew wide with joy.

"Let's get to work." Patricia, Amber, Nina and Fabian shut themselves up in the library and began translating the inscription. It proved to be a harder task than any of them expected because the words on the inside of the band were very hard to read. After a few hours though, they had finally finished the riddle.

Fabian shut the book with a hard snap and leaned back in his chair. In the middle of the table was the ring and a piece of paper with what they hoped was the translated clue. Just then, the door creaked open and everyone dove to hide the ring and the clue, but all the ended up doing was smacking heads. "So this is where you all have been hiding." Everyone at the table let out a sigh of relief. It was Alfie. "Woah, did you translate the clue already?" he asked when he saw the ring and the paper sitting on the table. He picked up the clue and read over the words. "So what does this mean?"

"We don't know, but we're going to figure it out." Patricia said firmly.

"Let's think about it tomorrow. I'm starving," Amber said. Everyone nodded in agreement and began to walk out of the library.

"Just like old times huh?" Fabian said to Nina as they walked out.

"Yeah, but hopefully this time doesn't end with some lunatic trying to kill us with red electric deadly flies." Fabian chucked and the two of them shut the door to the library.

_When Helios rides across the sky  
__The father of Triton will extend his hand  
__And reach for his mighty weapon_

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**So how was that? Was it worth the wait? I sure hope so. Now it's time for my last few messages. I'd like to thank my forum members for leaving the best reviews an author could ask for. I'd like to thanks Grace, my self proclaimed number one fan for constantly telling me to update. Lastly I'd like to thank Skip the plot bunny for giving me the best ideas ever! **

**So I hope after this really long chaper you all leave great, specific reviews on what you liked and didn't like. Also, don't forget to leave predictions. When someone gets a prediction right, the chapter that the answer to their prediction is revealed will be dedicated to them. So, I recommend reviewing and telling me your predictions! **

**Last thing, I swear. I haven't said this yet so I'll say it now and please remember it for all furture references-I don't actually own House of Anubis. I do own the plot though so I ask that you dont' steal it from me. If you do, well I'll hunt you down and do...well I don't know what yet but it'll be bad. So you have been warned. Peace out for now! **

**~Wolfie**


	15. House of Blackmail

**Here's another new chapter! It feels so food to be working on this story again and also to see that I haven't lost my ever loyal readers. I continue to write this story for you. So, something happens in this chapter that I've been planning to make happen for a while. I can't wait to find out your reactions so please review and tell me what you think. Even if you didn't like it. I want to know your opinions :) So for now, peace out.**

**~Wolfie**

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Chapter 15: House of Blackmail

"When Helios rides across the sky? What does that even mean?" Nina asked. She paced back and forth across the floor, trying to figure it out.

"Nina, your pacing is making me dizzy. Why don't you just sit down?" Amber asked. She stretched her legs out on the coffee table and glanced over at Fabian's computer screen. "What are you doing?" Curious, Nina went over and sat down on the other side of Fabian and studied the computer screen as well.

It was an article from the Britannica. The article itself was only a paragraph long but from what Nina saw, that paragraph was all they needed. At the top of the page, in big blue letters, was the word Helios. "What does it say?" Amber asked as she scanned the page.

"Well, it says here that Helios was the god of the sun that rode a chariot across the sky from east to west every day," Fabian explained. He looked to Nina and grinned, both of them understood what that meant.

"I don't get it," Amber said.

"Every day, from east to west. What travels from east to west every single day?" Nina asked slowly.

"Umm….the sun?" Fabian and Nina nodded vigorously. "So the clue means at sunrise? But where? What does that rest of it mean?"

"Patricia and Alfie are working on that part." Just as Fabian said that, the door to his room was thrown open, and Patricia and Alfie ran in. Quickly, Patricia slammed the door behind them.

"Umm, what happened?" Nina asked cautiously. Alfie looked over at Patricia, who was biting on her lower lip.

"Well, you see, Trixie and I were looking up stuff on Triton like you told us to and well…"

"Well what?" Fabian asked impatiently.

"Jerome walked in on us," Patricia admitted. "And he saw the clue that was sitting on the table, as well as our research." Fabian, Nina and Amber all stared at their two friends in shock. Nina knew how bad this was. Jerome had gotten involved with the last Sibuna mystery, and it had cost a lot of trouble for all of them. Even though Jerome was their friend, there was a part of him that Nina didn't fully trust. He had proven his loyalty to them, but then he had broken it when he stole the Ankh piece from Alfie. Although he had helped them get it back, a part of Nina never let go of that betrayal.

Fabian stood up, his research forgotten. "So what did he say?" he asked.

"He started asking us all of these questions. We didn't know what to tell him so gathered up our stuff, and booked it out of there as fast as we could. Knowing Jerome, he'll be up here any minute demanding answers," Patricia said, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. This was something that was very uncharacteristic for Patricia. When she constantly fidgeted, it meant she was nervous about something. Nina couldn't blame her for being nervous though. Jerome getting back into Sibuna could cause some major problems for all of them.

_Bang! Bang! Bang!_ Everyone jumped at the sudden noise. "Patricia! Alfie! I know you're both in there!" Jerome yelled from the other side of the door. Everyone looked at each other, unsure of what to do. Should they let Jerome in and reveal everything? Or ignore him and hope he gets bored and leaves? Eventually Nina slowly reached her hand out and turned the knob.

A rather flustered looking Jerome shoved the door open as soon as Nina began pulling the door open. "All right, I want answers," he demanded. "Alfie, what is going on?" Jerome pointed a finger straight at Alfie and stared him down, a scowl on his face. Alfie looked taken aback for a moment. It had been a long time since Jerome was that demanding with Alfie. It had almost cost them their friendship once before.

Jerome must have realized it as well because his face softened slightly, and he looked down slightly. That was Jerome's way of saying that he didn't mean what he had said. "We don't have to tell you anything Clarke," Patricia said forcefully. She had suppressed her nerves enough to stand up to Jerome.

"Oh yes you do Trixie. The five of you have formed your little Scooby gang again haven't you?" When no one answered him, Jerome smirked, looking very pleased with himself. "So why didn't you say anything to me about this cheery little reunion?"

"Because you were never a real part of Sibuna. The only reason we told you anything at all was because you were stupid enough to get mixed up with Rufus," Patricia answered curtly. Jerome shuddered ever so slightly at the mention of Rufus Zeno, the man who had threatened his life on numerous occasions.

Gaining his composure Jerome looked at each member of Sibuna and whispered, "Well you better tell me everything you know. Unless you want Amber's mum to find out about your little adventure to the third floor the other night." Everyone's mouths fell open, and Amber gripped the edge of the chair so tightly that her knuckles were turning white.

"You know about that?" Amber asked back. Jerome nodded, a smug smile creeping across his face.

"I heard Alfie sneak out of the room, so I decided to follow and see what he was up to. I had no idea that the Nancy Drew Club had reformed. So, having second thoughts of keeping information from me?" Jerome looked at Alfie, knowing that if any of them cracked, he would be the first one to. Much to his surprise, Alfie showed no signs of backing down to Jerome's stare.

"Meeting. Now." Fabian ordered. Jerome watched as the Sibuna members went out onto the deck and stood in a little huddle like frightened sheep. The stood out there talking for a while, occasionally looking inside the room at Jerome. At one point everyone nodded their heads except Nina and Fabian. Jerome hadn't expected anything less. Nina still didn't trust him, and Fabian could never vote against Nina. Those two really were adorable, in a gross and pathetic kind of way. Eventually, they all did that little hand motion of theirs and came back in the room. Nina looked less than pleased as they all walked into the room and stood before Jerome.

Fabian was the first to speak up. "All right, we're going to tell you on a need to know basis. After all the things that happened at school, some of us aren't sure if you can be fully trusted or not." Jerome, of course, wasn't an idiot. He knew that he meant Nina. But, in order to get what he wanted, Jerome knew he had to comply with them.

"Fine. Need to know basis. I proved that I can be trusted before and I can do it again. Then maybe everyone here will know that I actually can be trusted with all of your precious secrets." Jerome cast a small glare at Nina. It wasn't that he cared if the American trusted him or not, it was more about knowing everything that went on around him. Jerome hated being out of the loop of things.

"All right. Patricia, Amber, why don't the two of you fill Jerome in on what he needs to know. Alfie, you, me and Nina will head back down to the library and finish solving the clue," Fabian suggested. "The three of you can join us when you're done." Alfie and Patricia nodded and they sat Jerome down in one of the armchairs that were in the room. The others walked out of the room and made their way down the hall to the library.

"I have a bad feeling about this Fabian. Do you think we can fully trust Jerome?" Nina whispered as they reached the staircase.

"We have to. And who knows? Maybe he can be of help to us. What worries me the most is if Mara and Mick will notice anything. When we were at school, they had a lot of things to distract them from what we were doing. Here, there isn't much to keep suspicion from rising."

"Not just from Mick and Mara. There's the staff as well. The day we went to the ruins, I was sorta eavesdropping on a conversation Mr. Millington was having with someone. When I turned around, Leto was standing behind me. I think she's watching us. Haven't you noticed her always just popping up in different places while we're talking about the mystery?" Nina darted her eyes around the large foyer, searching for the dark-eyed head of house. She let out a sigh of relief when she didn't see anyone else in the room besides them.

"Are you two turtledoves coming or not?" Alfie yelled from the library. Fabian and Nina looked at each other and laughed. Shaking their heads, they went into the dim library and shut the door. Alfie managed to find the books that he and Patricia were using and opened to the pages they left off at.

"So, Triton is the son of Poseidon?" Nina asked as she looked through one of the books. "OK, so what we have right now is that at sunrise Poseidon will reach out for his weapon at dawn. Well, since Poseidon is a myth, there has to be another meaning to this clue."

"Plus, what's his mighty weapon?" Alfie piped in.

"Well that's easy. It's his trident. Every statue and picture I've ever seen of Poseidon shows him holding it," Fabian answered, skimming through a different book.

"What are we not getting?" Nina exclaimed. She turned to face the window, mindlessly staring at the sea while she twirled a piece of hair around her finger. Alfie and Fabian were both reading through the stack of books, completely submerged into their work. Nina just stood there and watched as the waves crashed and rolled in the deeper water before calmly washing up against the sand.

She noticed that the water almost looked like millions of little fingers running up the sand as it hit different points of the sand. "That's it!" Nina screamed! Both Fabian and Alfie jumped at Nina's sudden outburst.

"What's it?" Fabian asked. Nina didn't answer him. Instead, she ran out of the library, through the living room, out onto the patio and across the yard all the way down to the shore. She kicked off her flip flops and let the water rush over her feet.

Fabian and Alfie, who had followed her all that way, stopped at the edge of the beach. "I think she's finally lost it dude," Alfie muttered. Fabian ignored the comment and went to stand beside Nina.

"The waves, Fabian. The hand of Poseidon." Fabian studied the crashing waves for a moment, then his eyes widened.

"So now we just need to figure out where. Where is his mighty weapon?"

"So are you two going to fill me in on all of this?" Alfie yelled. Nina picked up her shoes and followed Fabian up the shore.

"Nina thinks that the waves are the hand of Poseidon, and that at sunrise they hit a certain spot that is his 'mighty weapon'. So now all we have to do is figure out where that could be."

"Nina, I don't know how you do it, but you're brilliant!" Alfie exclaimed. Fabian nodded in agreement and grinned at Nina.

"OK, so wherever this spot is we need to reach it at sunrise. That doesn't give us a huge window of time to actually find it. I think we should start looking now," Nina suggested.

"I agree. I'm going to go get the others so they can help. Be right back!" Alfie said, turning around. He began to run across the yard and soon vanished over the hill.

"So where do you want to start looking?" Fabian asked. Nina looked up and down the beach. They didn't even know what they were looking for specifically and there was so much area for them to cover. For some reason, Nina felt the urge to go down the tide pools first.

She extended her hand out and pointed to the tide pools. "Down there. For some reason I think we should start at the tide pools."

"Another one of your feelings?" Fabian asked. He drew out the word feelings in his teasing way that he knew Nina found annoying but funny at the same time.

"So we're back to that again are we?" Nina asked with a humored tone in her voice. She stuck her tongue out at him and laughed.

"Real mature."

Laughing, the two made their way over to the tide pools. Nina was thrilled to see that no one else was around. There was no one to be suspicious of them as they searched around for anything that could be a trident. "Do you think it could be somewhere along this back wall?" Fabian asked. He pointed to the soaring wall of rock that lined the back of the tide pools. Nina knew that at the top of it was the edge of the Millington estate. The drop off began right at the edge of the sand and the wall continued its way up from there as it followed the edge of the estate. From where they were standing, Nina guessed that they were right below the servant's quarters. Amber had mentioned it on her tour the day they came. It was a separate building from the mansion, but still very close to it.

"It's worth a shot. Let's check it out. I don't think we'll find anything in the pools anyways." Nina found that along the back wall of the tide pools was just as hard to maneuver as the more open areas. Sharp needles of water stung her skin as she clung to the wall.

"Nina, look," Fabian whispered to her. She thought that he had found something, but instead Fabian was pointing to a figure a ways down the tide pools.

"It looks like Philip," Nina observed. If she was right, then Philip was crossing the tide pools, occasionally stopping and picking something from the shallow water and dropping it into a basket in his other hand.

"So, how curious are you feeling right now?" Fabian asked, with a mischievous grin on his face. Nina looked back at the beach where the others would soon be coming, and then back down to Philip. The others could search without them for a while.

"Let's go."


	16. House of Findings

**Well look at that-another chapter. This is a very special one because I get to make a great shout out! izzi08, as I told you earlier, you gave me my 200th review on this story so this chapter is dedicated to you! I got to do some fun things in this chapter and by the end there will be some people who are very happy with me. Well, there might also be some who aren't so happy with me. It all depends. Either day, pretty please give revies that are at least 20 words long. I want actual feedback. I know how to spell the word update. And I'm aware that this story is good cuz I've gotten 200 reviews saying that so I'd like to see something different for the nect group of reviews. Thanks so much! Skip and I appreciate it. Peace out for now.**

**~Wolfie**

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Chapter 16: House of Findings

Trying to keep up with Philip without getting caught proved more difficult than Nina thought. He was moving quickly along the shore, casually stepping from rock to rock as if he had done this a million times before.

"How much farther could he be going?" Fabian muttered irritably. They were getting too off task. They should be searching for Poseidon's trident, not following a butler across the tide pools.

"Look there!" Nina called. She pointed as Philip made a sharp turn and vanished from sight. Nina's first reaction was to panic. Had he fallen in the water? Was he hurt? Then she realized that there was no danger at all. Hidden within the rock was the opening to a cave. From where they had been standing, it looked like Philip had disappeared into thin air.

The pair crept up to the mouth of the cave and peered into the darkness for any sign of Philip. "There there," a voice soothed. "Soon you'll be back with your family and friends in no time. Until then, I'll take care of you."

"Who's he talking to?" Nina whispered. She tried to lean forward more, but ended up losing her footing on the seaweed covered rocks. With a yelp she began to fall forward.

"Nina!" Fabian yelled. He reached out and managed to catch Nina around her waist before she crashed into the rocks. When Nina realized she had stopped falling she looked up to Fabian and imminently felt her face begin to heat up.

"Are you two all right?" Nina stood up and spun around to see Philip at the mouth of the cave. He was giving them a puzzled look, and both Nina and Fabian cleared their throats. "So, what are the two of you doing out here?"

"Well," Nina began. "We were looking at the tide pools when we saw you walking down here. Our curiosity got the best of us I suppose." She gave Philip an apologetic smile, and prayed that he bought her lie.

"Both of you have a love of uncovering mysteries don't you?" Philip chucked to himself, as if he had thought of something funny when he made his comment. "Now that you two are here, you might as well come see what I have hidden away in here." He beckoned them forward and stepped into the cave. "Watch your step, it's slippery." Holding out his hand, he helped then both into the cave.

Inside the cave was much cooler than the air outside. As Nina's eyes adjusted she saw that the cave was actually a tunnel. It was small, narrow and short. Nina actually had to crouch down just so she could fit inside. Ahead of her, Philip was actually on his hands and knees as he inched forward in the cave.

"Come on you two, it's right back here," he called over his shoulder. Reluctantly, Nina copied Philip's actions and began crawling through the cave. It was really difficult because the floor of the cave was made of small rocks that dug into Nina's palms and knees. Fortunately, about ten feet in, the cave began to open up more and Nin didn't have to crawl to move around. She found it much easier, and much less painful, to balance on the balls of her feet and inch forward while using her hands for support. Eventually Philip stopped and turned to face Nina and Fabian. "All right. Now I need both of you to stay very still. Don't make any sudden movements, and most importantly, under no circumstances are you allowed to reveal what I'm about to show you. Do we have a deal?"

"Deal," the two said in unison. Philip smiled and beckoned them to follow him. Right in the back of the cave, on a bed on rocks, was the last thing Nina had suspected to see. Stretched out, its eyes shut tight, was a baby seal.

"His name is Mikró. I found him a few days ago, washed up on the beach. Poor little guy was half starved and had an injured flipper so I've been taking care of him here," Philip explained.

"What kind of seal is it?" Fabian asked.

"Mediterranean Monk seal. They're endangered. Scientists think that there are less than six hundred left in the entire world." At this point Mikró woke up and yawned, showing off a row of tiny teeth. He rolled over onto his back and Nina was able to see that there was a white stripe running down the middle of his stomach. "Nina, when you saw me at the tide pool the other day, when I had all the mollusks with me, I was getting food for him. They love mollusks."

"So why can't we tell anyone about him?" Nina asked. If this was an endangered seal, then shouldn't a professional be taking care of him?

"Leto."

"What about her?"

"If she finds out about him, she'll call the animal control. Then they'll take him away from here and put him in a zoo. He deserves to be free, with his family, wherever they are." Philip looked down at the little Mikró and smiled warmly.

"We won't tell anyone," Fabian promised. Nina nodded in agreement. Philip then wrapped his arms around the two of them in a giant hug.

"Thank you both so much. Now, I need to get going before I'm missed at the house. You two better get out of here too." Philip quickly threw a few more mollusks at Mikró before making his way out of the cave. The little seal waddled over to the shellfish, sniffing each one. Before he left, Philip had cracked them open to make it easier for him to eat. Mikró, sensing no danger, began to eat the mollusks one by one. The whole time he made a low pitch barking noise, similar to a dog.

He finally noticed Nina and Fabian and made a low growl at them, telling them to get away from his food. "We better get out of here. Besides, the other are probably looking for us," Fabian said as he began turning around to leave the cave.

The blinding sun greeted them warmly as they stepped out of the cave. "So now what? Keep looking around for the clue ourselves? Or go find the others and look in a group?" Nina asked. She looked down the coast, towards the beach, trying to find her friends. Sadly, none of the other Sibuna members could be seen.

"Umm, Nina, I think I might have found something," Fabian said breathlessly. Nina spun around to see Fabian pointing at something further down the rocky coastline. About thirty feet above them, worn right into the rock, was the shape of a trident. Nina stared in awe at the rock wall and her jaw dropped.

"I think we should go get the others," Nina suggested.

"Agreed." The two of them started making their way back towards the beach, hoping that they would find the others along the way. Just as they hit the sand of the beach, Fabian spotted Patricia and Alfie jogging towards them. Amber and Jerome were walking behind them, deep in discussion about something.

"Guys we have to show you something," Nina said as soon as Patricia and Alfie were in hearing distance. The two nodded and Patricia turned and motioned for Amber and Jerome to catch up. Fabian and Nina led the rest of Sibuna down the tide pool line until the trident was visible in the rock wall.

The others seemed to be just as shocked as Nina and Fabian had been. "It would be the perfect hiding place. After all, would anyone have noticed it if we hadn't been looking for a trident? It looks just like a fissure in the wall," Fabian explained.

"So the clue is in there?" Jerome asked, pointing to the crack. "And how exactly are we supposed to get up there? It's got to be thirty feet in the air!"

"We'll figure something out. With the waves it would be too dangerous to climb up," Patricia muttered. She looked up and down the entire wall before her eyes settled on one spot. "But we might be able to repel down. Look up there." She pointed to the very top of the cliff. "That's not far from the house. If we got a hold of some rope and stuff, one of us could repel down the cliff and get the clue." All eyes darted from Patricia, to the cliff, back to Patricia then finally to Amber.

"Well…we do have some rock climbing gear. Daddy likes to rock climb when he's in an extreme sports mood. I can try to get it from Philip, but I don't know if he'll give it to us without us telling him where we're climbing."

"Who says we have to tell anyone?" Jerome asked.

"You mean steal the stuff?" Alfie asked, shocked. Jerome nodded. "But what if we get caught?"

"It's a risk we have to take," Amber said. Five heads all snapped towards her, eyes wide open, jaws dropped.

"Wow, I didn't expect to hear that coming from you Amber," Patricia said.

"Well here's the way I see it. We need that clue. If we don't get it, we can't find the treasure and we can't find my dad. If stealing from my dad is the only way to find my dad, then that's what I'm going to do. Who's with me?" Amber held up her hand in front of her eye and gave each of them a serious look. With a grin, Nina repeated the gesture. Alfie, Fabian and Patricia both followed after her. The five of them all looked at Jerome. Flashing a quick, mischievous grin, Jerome copied the gesture. He had been accepted into the group.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-..-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Later on that evening, after supper, Nina and Patricia were going back to their rooms. Right after supper the two of them along with Fabian and Jerome went to the library to try and learn more about Aspída. It had been Jerome's idea—he thought that maybe knowing more about this group would help them find the rest of the clues.

They sifted through at least fifty different websites, but there was nothing concrete enough to bother sharing with the others. The most information they had found was that Aspída was the Greek word for shield, and the information that Adriane had given them. That information was sketchy at best. "This was a totally waste of time," Patricia muttered. "I hope Amber and Alfie had more luck than we did with getting the stuff." Before Nina could answer, she was cut off by the sound of soft crying on the other side of the door to Patricia's room.

"Mara?" Nina called out.

"C-come in," Mara choked out. Patricia looked over at Nina before gently pushing the door open. They saw Mara curled up in one of the armchairs, holding a box of tissues on her lap. Her eyes were a little bit red, and there were obvious tear lines on her face.

Patricia went over to Mara's side and crouched down on the floor beside her friend. "What happened?" she asked softly. Nina came over and joined Patricia on the floor.

"I-I got in a fight with Mick. It started out as nothing, just us trying to figure out what we wanted to do tomorrow, but then it turned into a fight about who has to give in more when we do stuff together. He thinks that I make him give up everything he likes to do, just so we can do what I want to. I told him he was being ridiculous, but then he said that…that…" Mara couldn't finish her sentence. She pulled another tissue from the box and began dabbing here eyes. Nina stood up and managed to sit next to Mara in the chair. She wrapped her arms around her friend and Mara began crying on her shoulder. Patricia sat on the armrest and gently rubbed her shoulders and back.

"It'll be ok Mara," Patricia soothed.

"No it won't. He-he said that maybe it would be better if we took a break. I don't know if he meant it though." Nina and Patricia looked at each other. Mick was known to make snap decisions, but typically he stuck to them. Just like when he broke up with Amber almost out of the blue.

"Mara, everything will work out. Look at Amber after she broke up with Mick. She's doing just fine," Nina reassured.

"I guess you're right. No one ever died from getting dumped before. It's just weird to think about. I don't get boys," Mara said with a small laugh. Nina and Patricia laughed along with her. "Thanks guys. I'm feeling a little bit better now." Mara stood up from her seat in the chair and crossed the room slowly. She opened the door to the balcony and gazed up at the stars.

From where they were sitting, Nina and Patricia were able to hear Mara hum to herself. Wanting to give her some space, Nina and Patricia silently left the room and shut the door behind them. "Psssst Nina, Patricia, come over here." Amber stood at the end of the hall, checking over her shoulder every once in a while. The two scurried down the hall and followed Amber as she opened a random door in the hall that neither of them had ever seen before.

"Why are we in a closet?" Nina asked as she followed Patricia into the cramp closet. Fabian, Alfie and Jerome were already sitting in there, and they all looked very uncomfortable. There was barely enough room for them before Nina and Patricia tried to squeeze in.

"Amber, this better be quick," Patricia said. Nina noticed a slight nervousness in her voice. She knew that it was due to the claustrophobia she had developed after being kidnapped by Rufus. She moved around Nina so that she was closer to the door. With the small amount of moving space in the closet, this caused her to trip Nina. She fell forward, and was promptly caught by Fabian and Alfie.

Fabian helped her up and smiled at her. Nina hadn't noticed, but both Alfie and Amber saw the blush that was growing in Fabian's cheeks as he helped Nina stand up. "Right. So I called you all in here to tell you that Alfie and I were successful in getting the rock climbing equipment. We both thought that it would be a good idea to go out now and set it up," Amber explained. She held up a backpack that was bulging with the climbing equipment.

"Yeah, cuz then it'll be harder for people to find. And we won't be rushed to set it up at sunrise. What do you guys think?" Alfie asked. A few quick glances around the crowded closet showed that everyone was on board. Patricia then threw open the door and burst out into the hallway.

Amber led the way down a different hallway and took them down a flight of stairs. At the bottom there was a small wooden door that seemed out of place in this grand house. "Service door," Amber explained. The service door took them out into the back side of the estate. If Nina squinted, she could just make out the statues of the garden in the evening twilight.

Amber led them across the yard until she stopped right on the edge of the rock wall. "This is the spot," she said, confidence in her voice. She set the backpack down in the grass.

"What's stopping us from getting this clue right now?" Jerome asked.

"Because the clue told us that we had to get it at sunrise," Nina explained.

"And Jerome, there's another reason. You guys might want to get a look at this," Fabian said softly. He was kneeling in the grass at the edge of the wall, looking down. Everyone lined up in the grass next to him, trying to get a look at what he was talking about.

"Well, this complicates things a bit," Patricia muttered.


	17. House of Heights

**Holy cow it's been forever since I updated this! I know none of you want to hear this, but I've been busy and I had some major writer's block/lack of inspiration. Luckily thanks to _All the possiblities _I finally foreced myself to sit down and write this. So basically, this entire chapter is dedicated to you my friend. Thank you for making me get my mojo back! Now, I did some research for this chapter, as I usually do, but I'm not sure how accurate it is. If anyone finds something that doesn't make sense please let me know so I don't make the same mistake twice! Please and thank you! Lastly, it's time for shameless promotion of my other stories! I already know of a few readers of this story (you all know who you are) that have also read my Nine lives of Chloe king stories. If you are a HUGE fan of NLoCK like myself, please let me know! And join my forum so we can talk about the show,especially Team Alek vs Team Brian (for those of you who don't know, it's like team Edward vs Team Jacob but _COOLER_. Cuz Alek is freaking _British_! Okey doeky that's all my rambling, you've waited enough. So read, enjoy, review, favorite and tell your friends to do the same! Peace out.**

**~Wolfie**

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Chapter 17 House of Heights

"So anyone have an idea? Speak up now," Alfie asked.

"I don't think this is such a good idea anymore. Maybe we should figure out something else," Amber offered. With weary eyes, the six teens stared at the cliff below them. All along the rocky surface were giant nests. In each nest sat a particularly fierce looking falcon. The birds seem to take no notice to the teens, and everyone was happy to keep it that way.

Nina did a quick count of the birds. "There are like 30 of them down there," she whispered. Despite the fact that these were wild animals that could probably rip her arm off, Nina was amazed at how beautiful they were. In the low light, she could see that the top part of them was a either dark brown or black and their stomachs' were more of a tawny brown color.

"These birds must have something to do with why the clue told us to come here at sunrise. I guess we'll have to come back later and just do what it says," Fabian determined.

"Well let's just do what we came here to do, and set up all the stuff," Patricia grumbled. She took the backpack from Amber and began emptying it of its contents. There were two climbing harnesses, tons of rope, and some climbing rings. Since Nina had never been rock climbing before, she had no idea what it was all for, so she stood back and let Patricia set everything out. The goth girl clearly knew what she was doing. With expert hands, she knotted ropes and fed different parts through different rings and clipped them to harnesses.

"So, um, which of us are actually going down there?" Jerome asked. Patricia stopped tying a knot and looked at him curiously.

"I don't know. Why don't you, Jerome?" Nina could have sworn she saw an evil twinkle in Patricia's sapphire eyes. Jerome glanced from Patricia, to the cliff, to the climbing gear, then back to Patricia. Nina could make out little beads of sweat forming at his hairline.

Fabian scooted over towards Nina, and leaning towards her he whispered, "Jerome's afraid of heights." With an understanding nod, Nina turned her attention back to Jerome and Patricia who were bickering about Jerome being a chicken.

"I'll go down." The group fell silent and all eyes were on Amber, who was standing there looking very sure of herself. "I've been rock climbing lots of times. I'm not scared to go down there."

Fabian was the first to get over his surprise. "That's great Amber. So, should we all just head back to the house before we're missed? We can come back right before sunrise."

"Yeah let's get out of here. Those birds are giving me the creeps," Alfie said nervously. Glancing around the area, Patricia hid the backpack in a bush, and threw the harness down the cliff. It hung there, swaying in the breeze.

The sun had almost completely set on the horizon so it was rather difficult to see the path that led to the house. Luckily for everyone, the grass was perfectly manicured so they didn't have to worry about tripping over anything in their path. But, despite the flatness of the area and the lack of obstacles, Alfie still managed to trip. "Really Alfie? Only you could fall on a perfectly flat surface," Jerome mocked. Grumbling, Alfie stood up and stuck his tongue out at Jerome. "Oh so that's how you wanna play is it?" The lights on the outside of the house were able to show the smirk on the blonde's face.

"Oh why don't you two just grow up?" Patricia asked irritably.

"Stay out of it Williamson," Jerome remarked. Naturally, that brought Patricia into the argument, which lasted the rest of the walk back to the house, up the stairs and all the way to Patricia's door.

"Goodnight you guys," Nina called as she and Amber began walking to their room. Fabian waved to them, and then turned his attention back to getting Alfie and Jerome back to their room. Laughing, Nina and Amber opened the door to their room, only to find Mara sitting in a chair.

"There you two are. I've been waiting here for almost fifteen minutes now," Mara said softly. She stood up and crossed the room. Them, with a sob she threw her arms around both Nina and Amber.

"Is it really over Mara?" Nina asked softly. The dark haired girl lifted her head up and nodded. This caused Nina to tighten her grip around her friend.

"What's over?" Amber asked gently.

"Mick broke up with me today."

"Oh no. Mara I'm so sorry," Amber soothed. She took Mara by the hand and led her over to her bed. "Nina, why don't you get Patricia? The best way to get over a breakup is with some girl time." Nina nodded and slipped out the door.

When she got back to the room with Patricia, Mara and Amber were deep into a conversation about guys, particularly Mick. Patricia and Nina joined the two on the bed and for a while they just talked about normal girl stuff. It felt weird to Nina to have a conversation like this, after all that had been going on with the mystery. It was all so normal, and a part of her really enjoyed it.

After a while, the boy talk finished and Patricia did something that startled both Nina and Amber. "Hey Mara," she asked. "You did a project on birds in our seventh year didn't you?" Nina stared at Patricia in complete shock. She thought Patricia had finally lost it.

"Yes. It was for the science fair. Why?"

"Do you know anything about birds of prey that live on the coast of islands?" Quickly and secretly, Nina shot Patricia a glare that read 'what do you think you're doing?' Mara thought for a moment, deep in thought.

"I have a few ideas of what it could be, but I would need to look it up to double check. Why?"

"Oh, I, um, I saw this hawk or falcon or something flying over this island today and I was just wondering what it was." Patricia returned a nervous glance to Nina. She was hoping her cover story worked. Mara gave her friend a puzzled look, but didn't further question the matter.

"I'll look up the website I used for the project and you can try to find it." Patricia smiled and nodded. Thankfully, the topic changed right after that to upcoming movies. Amber wanted to see the new Twilight movie, but Patricia argued the idea, calling the movie a 'disgrace to cinema and vampires alike' and told Amber she was a 'lovesick glitter boy fan'.

After a while, the girls all fell asleep on the bed, still fully dressed in their street clothes. Sometime, a while later, there was a light tapping on the door. Groggily, Nina opened her eyes and sat up. A quick glance at the clock made her eyes snap open. The glowing green lights read 5:30. There was only a half hour left until sunrise.

Gently Nina shook Patricia's shoulder, trying to wake her up quietly. With a scowl, she opened her eyes, and Nina pointed to her wrist. With a nod she sat up and rolled off the edge of the bed. Nina then went to wake up Amber, which was harder than she would have liked it to be. Eventually, the three girls were up and out of bed. Just as Nina went to turn the handle, Mara began to wake up. "Whas' goin' on?" she asked groggily.

"Shhhh, this is all a dream Mara. Just go back to sleep," Amber whispered. With a nod, Mara shut her eyes and went back to sleep. Sighing with relief, Nina opened the door and the three of them went out into the hall. Fabian, Jerome and Alfie were all standing there impatiently.

"Took you three long enough," Jerome hissed. One glare from Patricia was enough to shut him up. The group followed Amber down the hall, and out the service door they had used the night before. When they reached the cliff, Patricia hauled up the climbing harness she had thrown over. Swiftly, she helped Amber climb into it and strap in.

"So, what am I looking for exactly?" Amber asked as Patricia was checking all of the straps on the harness.

"A clue of some sort. It'll be in the trident somewhere," Fabian explained.

"Just watch out for those giant birds," Jerome added. Amber reached forward and smacked him in the arm. "What was that for?"

"Reminding me they were down there!" she snapped back.

"Umm…Ambs, I don't think you'll have to worry about that," Alfie said. "They're gone." Everyone went to the edge of the cliff to see what he was talking about. True enough, the birds were all gone.

"Maybe they hunt at sunrise or something," Nina suggested.

"Who cares? It's five minutes to sunrise Amber, just get down there and get the clue," Patricia ordered. With a nod, Amber stood with her back to the water and slipped down the edge of the cliff. Patricia and Jerome stood at the edge, holding the support ropes. Fabian, Nina and Alfie all sat on the ground next to them and watched as Amber repelled down the wall about twenty feet, to where the top of the trident was worn out in the rock. She gripped the rock and began scanning the whole area.

"I don't see it yet!" she called. Carefully, Amber slid along the rock wall looking for any signs of the clue.

"Maybe we were wrong?" Nina wondered out loud. "Maybe it's not here."

"I found it!" Amber shrieked. "Pull me up guys!" Patricia and Jerome took her cue and began pulling back on the anchor rope. About halfway up, Nina saw a look of fear spread across Amber's face. Just then, a word came out of Amber's mouth that Nina didn't even know Amber knew.

"Amber? What's wrong?" Fabian called.

"Patricia! My belay! The knot is coming undone!" Amber shrieked. In shock, Patricia almost dropped the rope. Just then, an ear piercing shriek split through the air. Time froze as Amber began to plummet down towards the rocky coast. Nin watched in horror as Amber slowed to a stop, and clenched the rope with all her might, swaying back and forth with the ocean gusts.

"I'm going down there. Alfie Fabian, take the rope. Nina, come help me," Patricia demanded. The boys took the rope from her and the three boys held onto the rope, trying to keep Amber from falling. Nina helped Patricia into the second harness, and then Ashe handed a rope to Nina. "Fabian, help her with this." Fabian nodded to Alfie and dropped the rope and took Patricia's. As quickly as she could, Patricia dropped down the edge of the cliff towards Amber.

When she reached the terrified blonde, Patricia took a clip from her harness and attached it to Amber's. With a firm tug Patricia let go of the clip, and reached her arm out to Amber. "Amber, grab my rope," she said firmly. With a very shaky hand Amber reached forward and took hold of Patricia's rope. She then used her other hand to hold onto Patricia.

With the sudden added weight, Nina and Fabian struggled to hold onto the anchor rope. "Guys, help us," Nina choked out. Since Amber was holding onto Patricia's rope, Jerome and Alfie let go of it and took a hold of Patricia's. The four of them all worked to pull Amber and Patricia up the cliff. Since Patricia didn't have time to put an anchor pin into the ground, they were holding onto the weight of both girls without any help.

"You're almost there! Just a little bit farther guys," Patricia yelled up to them. When she was able to reach the edge of the cliff Patricia clung onto it. Nina rushed forward to help pull Amber up, followed by Patricia. Both girls lay flat on their backs in the grass, breathing heavily. The guys dropped the rope and fell into the grass next to them.

"That…was…the most terrifying…thing…ever to happen…to me," Amber whispered in between pants.

"What happened?" Nina asked.  
"The device that keeps me from falling—the belay—the knot that is tied above it came undone," Amber said. She glanced over at Patricia, the one who had tied the knots.

"When I tied that know earlier, it was just fine!" Patricia snapped. She glared at Amber, seemingly offended about the fact that Amber almost doubted her. Fabian held up his hands, to silence both girls.

"Let's not get into a fight. We can't be fighting among ourselves if we want to solve this mystery." Nina, Jerome and Alfie all nodded in agreement. "Amber, why don't we just read the clue? Then get this stuff back to the house before it's missed?" With the slightest of frowns, Amber held out the clue in her hand, which Fabian took from her. As he read it to himself, Patricia and Amber began taking off their harnesses.

"What does it say Fabian?" Nina asked.

"Greed will get you nowhere; let this lesson to you be fair. Do not be like the foolish king, who thought that it was the only thing. Because of what he had done, he almost lost what was more precious to him than the sun." Fabian finished reading the clue and looked at the other Sibuna members.

Alfie sighed loudly and muttered, "Well, another really weird riddle to solve. Why can't these clues just be 'hey go here and look behind this thing and that's where the next clue will be'?"

"Wish I knew Alfie. Wish I knew," Nina said in agreement.

"We won't figure it out sitting out here. Let's get this stuff put away and get back to the house before we're missed," Jerome suggested. With a nod everyone stood up and handed Patricia the climbing gear, which she shoved back into the backpack. Fabian handed the clue to Nina and the six of them walked back to the house, completely unaware of a lone figure standing no more than fifty yards away in the shadows.


	18. House of Blood

**Sooooo it's been a while. How's everyone been? Having a good summer? Cuz I am! And I still have another month off! Woohoo! Anywho, after getting a review from the wonderful Izzi08, as well as being a beta for Blahgal, I finally found the motivation to finish this chapter. Without any further ado, I present you with...House of Ellada, chapter 18: House of Blood. Please enjoy and remember that I do not own House of Anubis characters.**

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Chapter 18 House of Blood

"Where were you guys this morning?" Mara asked. A silence fell over the table as Nina, Amber and Patricia struggled for an answer. To stall for time Nina took a rather large bite out of a piece of watermelon and chewed it slowly.

With an impatient frown Mara turned to Patricia and Amber. "We," Patricia said slowly, "went on an early morning walk. The three of us thought that you would like to sleep in, especially after what happened yesterday." Patricia and Amber threw a particularly nasty glare at Mick. With a scowl, the blonde stood up and walked away from the table.

"Well he seems to be taking this well," Jerome commented. Next to him Alfie snickered. Mara balled up her napkin and threw it at Jerome. In disgust she got up from the table, and walked inside.

"All right, since it's just us now. Why don't we try to figure out this clue," Fabian suggested. Nina nodded and pulled the piece of faded paper from her pocket.

"Greed will get you nowhere; let this lesson to you be fair. Well, that sounds like it's talking about money obviously. There are more important things in the world than money," Nina stated as she read over the clue again. Jerome chuckled to himself as he looked at Amber.

"Real mature Jerome," she grumbled at him. "How shallow do you think I am?" Jerome merely shrugged as Nina continued to read the rest of the clue.

"Do not be like the foolish king, who thought it was the only thing. Because of what he had done, he almost lost what was more precious to him than the sun. So anyone have any ideas?"

"Hey what about that one king we learned about in history class two years ago?" Alfie exclaimed. "The one who turned everything he touched to gold?"

"King Midas?" Patricia asked. "Well it fits the clue, but it's not likely the real King Midas can give us the next clue. Looks like it's back to the library."

"Yeah, but now we're have to work even harder to keep our secret from Mick and Mara. They don't have each other to distract themselves, and I think Mara is starting to suspect something is up. We bought some time with the walk on the beach cover but that won't last long," Nina told the others as she hid the clue safely in her pocket.

Amber nodded in agreement. "Nina's right. Mara's smart, we all know that. She's bound to notice that something is up sooner or later."

"Then here's an idea? Why don't we just tell them? One less thing for us to worry about," Jerome asked. Fabian shook his head. Before he had a chance to explain why it wouldn't work, Patricia spoke up.

"In case you didn't notice before Jerome, us solving a mystery like this is dangerous. We almost died last time. Do you really want to put Mick and Mara in the middle of all of this? That guy Nina saw at the ruins said that we were all in danger."

"What guy? You lot never told me about a guy," Jerome snapped back. That's when he remembered they were keeping him at a 'need to know' basis. "I guess you still don't fully trust me then."

"Jerome it's not that. Patricia told you pretty much everything anyway. When Fabian, Mara and I were at the ruins there was this old guy who said if the eight of didn't leave, we would all be in danger. He's kinda the reason I suspected something was up to begin with," Nina explained.

"Right. Well next time, make sure to actually tell me important details like that so I'm not totally in the dark."

"All right guys. Why don't we get to work on solving this clue?" Fabian suggested. "Nina why don't you and I work on figuring out what the clue could be talking about. Jerome, how about you and Patricia try to figure out where a clue could be hidden here in town, something that could be related to King Midas. Um, Amber how about you and Alfie…"

"Go to the beach!" Amber exclaimed. When the group stared at her in shock she grinned sheepishly. "Alfie and I can go to the beach, so that we can keep Mara and Mick busy while the rest of you try to work on the clue." Amber grinned widely, looking rather pleased with herself.

"Amber, that's, that's brilliant," Fabian started in awe.

"Did you just use Amber and brilliant in the same sentence?" Jerome asked, a bewildered look on his face.

"Shut up Clarke," Patricia sneered. Jerome shrugged and went back to poking a piece of fruit with his fork. Patricia turned back to Nina and Fabian. "Despite the fact that I hate being stuck with rocks for brains over here, it sounds like a good plan. Let's all meet up in the library before lunch to go over what we found. Sibuna?"

"Sibuna." The three pairs all got up from the table and went off to do their own work. Nina, Fabian, Patricia and Jerome all ducked into the library while Amber and Alfie ran up the stairs.

Before the pair got to Amber's door, Amber stopped them and glanced around her. "OK, so I know that Mara and Mick won't want to go down to the beach together so we'll have to get them to come separately. Do you want to try and get Mara to come? Or Mick?"

"Mara. Mick gets annoyed with me too easily. He'd just kick me out of the room." Amber nodded and skipped merrily down the hall towards Mick's room. Taking a deep breath, Alfie knocked on Mara's door.

"Come in!" the muffled voice replied. Slowly Alfie pushed open the door and stepped into the room.

"Hey Mara. I was wondering if you wanted to come down to the beach with me. And Amber," he asked carefully. His mind was racing for a good reason as to why he was asking her to come, just in case she asked.

"Sure. That sounds like fun. Let me change and I'll meet you out on the patio. Thanks Alfie." Mara smiled as she set down the book she had been reading. With a wide grin Alfie nodded and shut the door.

As he was heading back towards his room he ran into Amber. "He's going to come," she whispered as they passed each other.

"Same with Mara." With a casual nod Amber opened the door to her room and shut it behind her with an audible click. Getting Mick to come had been easy enough. He was more than willing to go down to the beach and splash around in the warm ocean water.

Working quickly Amber opened up the drawers in her dresser until she found where she put her swimsuits. It wasn't hard for her to pick out one she liked. It was a pink polka-dot bikini. The bottom had a ruffly little skirt with a belt on it that tied in a bow. The top, along with the belt, was pink with white polka-dots and the bottom was white with pink. It took Amber exactly five minutes to change, pull her hair up into a ponytail and shove a beach towel and pool cover into a bag. When she stepped out of her room, Mick was standing there in lime green swim trunks and a grey t-shirt.

"Ready to go?" Mick asked as Amber shut the door.

"Just about. I need to get some sun block. It's in the hall closet." Amber crossed the hall and opened a narrow brown door. She pulled out a blue bottle and placed it inside her bag. "Now I'm ready to go." The pair made their way down the hall, and as they reached the stairs Amber noticed Mara and Alfie heading out onto the patio.

Mick must have noticed too because he stopped right in the middle of the staircase. "No way Ambs. If she's going to be down there, I'm not going."

"Mick, listen to me. I know you two broke up, but you were friends before you started dating, so you should be friends afterwards as well. You and I are still friends aren't we?" Mick looked from Amber, to Mara's retreating frame, back to Amber and back to Mara one more time. With a groan, he continued to walk down the stairs.

"I'm going to regret this, I just know it." Amber rolled her eyes and pulled Mick the rest of the way down the stairs. As the pair walked out onto the patio, Amber noticed Mara and Alfie across the lawn. Alfie was wearing a pair of black and silver swim trunks, and had a towel around his neck. Mara, being typical Mara, had on a pale yellow pool cover. She too, had a towel draped over her shoulders.

She paused for a moment, and turned back towards the house. When she saw Amber and Mick walking towards her, her skin turned pale. With a glare at Alfie she said something to him then stormed down towards the beach. "What was that about Alfie?" Amber asked as they reached the dumbfounded boy.

"Yeah what did she say mate?" Mick asked.

"Something very un-Mara. Let's just leave it at that." Alfie bent down and picked up the towel he had dropped. The three of them made their way back down to the beach. Mara was lying on her towel in the sand, the swimsuit cover over her eyes like a mask. As Amber looked at Mara she was shocked and pleased at the same time. Over the past few years Mara had improved greatly in her choice of swimwear.

Last time Mara wore a swimsuit around Amber it had been the most boring one piece in the history of lame swimsuits. Her parents had bought it for her, and naturally it was a competitive swimming suit. But now she was wearing a red, blue, and black bikini with a pair of black boy short bottoms. "Isn't it a beautiful day?" Amber asked as she set her towel down next to Mara.

"It was," Mara replied shortly.

"I think I'm just going to leave," Mick suggested. He turned toward the house, but Alfie grabbed his shoulder before he had the chance to walk away.

"Hey mate, I've got a better idea. Why don't you and I go down to the water? The girls can sit up here and have their girl talking time or whatever," Alfie suggested nervously. With a shrug Mick turned back around and headed down towards the water with Alfie following behind. As the pair reached the water's edge, Amber let out a sigh of relief. Hopefully she and Alfie could keep them distracted long enough for the others to get somewhere on the research.

Back up at the house, Nina and Fabian were knee deep in research. "Every book and website points to King Midas," Fabian said as he closed another book. "That's the easy part though."

"And so is what it was that he almost lost. The story says that he touched his daughter, and she turned to gold as well. Losing her is what made him want to get rid of the curse. But how does that help us figure out where the clue is?"

"That's up to Jerome and Patricia."

"Well hopefully they don't kill each other before they find anything. Let's clean this up. I don't think we're going to find anything in the books. This sounds like a job for the internet." Swiftly the pair re-shelved all of the books and began walking towards the back of the library where Patricia and Jerome were.

"So what do you think about the stuff that happened this morning? With the climbing ropes and all?" Fabian whispered.

"Well I know nothing about rock climbing so I have no idea what to even think. Patricia seemed so sure that everything was all right with the gear though. Do you think that someone did something to it? Like found it after we left and untied the knots?"

"I do. I didn't say this to any of you earlier because at first I hadn't thought anything of it. But, right after we got Amber and Patricia up, I saw a footprint in the dirt. It was too large to be any of us. Now I'm thinking that someone…"

"Knew what we were doing and wanted to stop us. At all costs," Nina finished. With a grim expression, Fabian nodded.

"We have to tell the others."

"Tell us what? That we're on a wild goose chase?" Jerome was leaning against a wall, drumming his fingers on its smooth surface.

"We haven't found anything," Patricia said as she stood up from the desk. "Well actually, we found a lot about King Midas, but none of it points to where the next clue could be. So we've gotten nowhere."

The four of them slowly walked out of the library, each deep into their own thoughts. Nina quickly glanced at her watch. They had a while before Amber and Alfie were going to be back. They had only spent an hour in the library.

Just as they reached the living room, an ear piercing shriek echoed through the room. The four teens all looked at each other, knowing exactly who's scream that was, but unsure as to why they heard it. Getting over her surprise, Nina jumped up and ran outside yelling, "Amber?" Fabian, Patricia and Jerome were following behind her. From towards the beach, they could see Amber tearing across the lawn as fast as she could.

When she got close enough she yelled to them, "Call an ambulance! Hurry!" Reacting instantly, Patricia ran back into the house.

"Amber what happened?" Nina asked urgently.

"Mick got hurt. He's bleeding really badly. He needs to go to this hospital!" Jerome, Nina and Fabian all looked at each other briefly, then back at Amber. Time seemed to freeze for a second, they were all suspended in limbo, and then the spell was over and the four of them were running across the lawn. When they got to the beach, Mick was kneeling on the sand clutching his hand with Mara and Alfie sitting beside him.

"Did you call the ambulance?" Mara asked when she saw them coming.

"Patricia's getting them right now," Nina said as she knelt down next to Mara. She noticed the blood that was dripping through Mick's fingers down onto the sand. The sight of it made her stomach churn. She wanted to stay and help her friends, but Nina realized that if she didn't look away, she would be sick.

"It's going to be ok Mick. The hospital will fix you right up," Amber said gently.

"How did this happen?" Fabian asked softly. Beside him Alfie shifted his weight from foot to foot. With a glance, Fabian looked at him. There was a look of pure horror etched on his face.

"We-we were down by the water, no farther in than like three feet deep. Mick said he saw something moving in the water, possibly a piece of trash. When he reached in to grab it, he screamed and the water started to turn red."

"Was it a shark?" Jerome asked.

"No. I don't think so. I'm not sure what it was though."

"Whatever it was, it bit him pretty hard. Maybe the doctors will know," Mara soothed. She clutched Mick's arm and helped him to his feet. "We should get him back up to the house so we can get him into the ambulance faster. Silently and quickly, the group of seven made their way up to the house where Patricia, Philip and Mrs. Millington were all waiting.

"The ambulance is on its way Mick," Mrs. Millington said with concern in her voice. Philip stepped forward and showed Mick the roll of gauze he had in his hand.

"This will slow down the bleeding until the doctors can get you all stitched up. The growing sound of sirens alerted everyone to the approaching relief. By the time the group made it to the front door the ambulance had stopped right in front of the house. Two EMTS ran out and began asking Mick a questions about what happened and where he had been and what he thought caused the injury.

After a few minutes, Mick was taken into the back of the ambulance and it drove away. Philip and Mrs. Millington returned into the house, leaving the rest of the group standing on the porch. "I hope it's not too bad," Amber whispered softly.

"He'll be fine Amber. There's nothing to worry about," Alfie told her. She sniffled and nodded weakly at him. As Alfie and Mara tried to calm Amber, Nina listened to the sound of the retreating siren. Thinking off all the blood she saw on the sand, she shuddered.

"What's wrong?" Patricia asked Nina.

"I'm just not a big fan of blood. It grosses me out," Nina said with a shrug. "And there was a lot of it around Mick, so it kinda freaked me out."

Deciding that standing on the porch was a waste of time, the seven of them went out onto the patio to eat lunch. By then, not many of them were hungry. Amber was still fighting back tears; Mara and Alfie were still trying to comfort her. Nina still felt queasy from seeing the blood. That just left Fabian and Jerome who actually ate.

Shortly after Jerome and Fabian finished eating, Amber burst out in sobs. "Th-th-this i-is a-a-a-all my fa-fault," she choked out through her tears. "It was my idea to di-dis-distract Mara and Mi-Mick at the beach." Everyone froze at Amber's words. All eyes were on Mara as she processed what Amber said.

"Distract us? Why would you need to distract us?" Amber must have realized what she had said because she quickly took control of her crying and looked nervously at her friends. "What is going on?" Mara stood up from the table and looked at each of her friends.

"It's nothing Mara. Don't worry about it," Jerome said quickly.

"It most certainly not nothing. For whatever reason, you are all keeping a secret from me and Mick. And now, because of that secret Mick is in the hospital. What are you all hiding? Why have you been sneaking around?" Angrily, Mara placed her hands on her hips. Daggers were practically coming out of her eyes and she glared at each nervous face before her.

"We can't tell you Mara," Patricia said gently. "It's for your own good."

Mara scoffed. "For my own good? What a load of rubbish. Patricia, I thought we were friends. And friends don't keep secrets from each other. Maybe we aren't as good of friends as I thought." Seething, Mara stormed off of the patio and back into the house. The Sibuna members all sat there for a second as then looked at Patricia. Her face had gone white, like she was in shock.

"So what now?" Fabian asked.

"Guys I'm so sorry. It just slipped out," Amber apologized.

"It's ok Amber. But now we need to figure out what we're going to do. Should we tell her?"

"Are you mad Nina? Why would you want to drag more people into this?" Alfie asked.

"Because now she's going to press us for information. Not to mention she'll be watching us like a hawk. It'll save us time if we just tell her," Fabian explained.

"Amber, Patricia what do you two think. You both are closer to her than any of us," Nina asked.

"We don't have much of a choice do we? Fabian's right, Mara won't leave us alone until she gets some answers," Patricia said.

"I agree with Patricia," Amber said. "So who's going to tell her?"

"Jerome I think you should," Alfie said.

"Me? Why on earth would I do that"

"Because Mara listens to you. Well, you and Patricia. But I don't think she wants to listen to Patricia right now. Plus, you said so yourself that we should just tell them and get it over with," he replied.

"All in favor of Jerome being the one to tell Mara about Sibuna raise your hand," Patricia called out. Five hands shot into the air and Jerome scowled at all of them.

"Fine. I'll go talk to her. What exactly do you want me to tell her though?"

"You don't have to tell her everything. Just get her to calm down so she'll listen to us," Fabian explained. "The more of us that are there to explain this, the easier it might be for her to understand." Jerome nodded grimly and left to go back inside the house.

"Do you think this is a good idea?" Nina whispered to Fabian.

"I don't really know. But it's the only option we have so we'll have to make it work. We don't have much of a choice."

* * *

**Sooooooo how was that? Mara joining Sibuna...can I please get some opinions on this matter? I would LOVE to know what you all think about it. That, and your guesses to what it is that injured Mick. There are only a few people that know what it is. Forum members, I can't remember if I told you at one point or not. If I did, don't guess! Let the others try to guess. The only other person who knows for sure is an author I spoke to back when I was planning this story out. That author would be Joker236. Joker, I don't know if you read HoA fics anymore, but if you do and you remember the conversation we had about this moment, it's finally happening! So anywho, anyone who isn't on the general discussion forum, or Joker236, I want to hear your guesses! And your opinions! Whether they be positive or negative. Reviews fuel my writing fire and feed my plot bunny Skip. Peace out.**

**~Wolfie **


	19. House of Completeness

**And look at that. I wrote another chapter! So this one was pretty fun to write but it took me forever to get it all written down. I've been working on this since 1:30 in the afternoon and it is now 11:53 PM. So basically, all day. I really enjoyed reading everyone's guesses as to what made Mick get hurt, and now you get to find out. There is a lot that happens in this chaper, so be prepared for it. Peace out. Remember to leave a nice review. **

**~Wolfie**

* * *

Chapter 19 House of Completeness

Jerome stood in front of the door to Mara's room. He didn't want to be there, in fact, he wanted to be anywhere but there. With a slow, deep breath Jerome tapped on the surface of the door.

There was a light sound of shuffling, and then the door swung open. "What do you want Jerome?" Mara asked.

"Five minutes. That's all."

"Start talking." Mara leaned against the door frame, and waited for Jerome to explain everything.

"I don't know how much you're going to believe, but everything I'm about to tell you is the truth. We're trying to find an ancient treasure. Nina, Fabian, Patricia, Amber, Alfie and myself. There's this group of people who want the treasure too, and we think that they're the ones who kidnapped Amber's dad. There are clues to where the treasure is all over the island, and the six of us are going to find them all. Then we're going to find the treasure and save Mr. Millington."

"How is that supposed to pass off for the truth? It sounds like something out of a mystery novel."

"I know it sounds ridiculous. If I was in your position, I wouldn't have believed me either. The only reason I believed Nina and the others in the first place was because this has all happened before. All the weird stuff that happened during the school year, like Joy disappearing, and the way the others were always sneaking around, we were solving a mystery. Mara, I know I'm not big into telling the truth, but this time I actually am. We didn't keep you out of the secret because we didn't want you part of it; we kept you out because it was too dangerous for you to be involved." Jerome stared at Mara, his eyes pleading with her. Looking into Jerome's icy blue eyes, Mara saw something that she had never seen before. Honesty. It was something so rare in his eyes; Mara wasn't sure how to respond.

"You're telling me the truth," Mara stated. It wasn't a question.

"Yes. Believe it or not, I do know how to tell the truth once in a while. "Now come on, the others can explain more to you than I can." For a second Mara seemed unsure if she wanted to come or not, so Jerome took her hand in his, and led her down the hallway. When they reached the staircase he could hear the whispering voices of the other Sibuna members just outside the foyer.

When they reached the bottom of the stairs, Jerome pulled Mara through the living room and out onto the patio. "Good work Jerome," Nina said as she saw them come out onto the patio. Everyone was still seated around the table, and they all watched as Mara sat down in one of the remaining chairs.

"Mara, we're so sorry we didn't tell you everything before. We all thought that it would be easier on everyone if you didn't know," Patricia started. "But, now I guess you deserve to know. Who wants to start?"

"We call ourselves Sibuna," Amber said. "I came up with it back at school. Clever isn't it? It's Anubis backwards. Since we lived in Anubis house and that was where we had our first mystery. So it was the perfect name for our group. Well back then it was just me, Fabian and Nina. Well technically it started out as just Fabian and Nina, but then I joined in."

"Amber!" Fabian shouted. "Let's keep it simple ok? We don't want Mara's head to explode." Amber smiled apologetically and nodded for Fabian to take over. "As Amber was saying, this all started back at school. There was an ancient Egyptian treasure hidden somewhere in the house, and we wanted to find it. The Frobisher-Smythes brought it back from Egypt in 1925, and they hid it in pieces. They set up a series of clues that would lead to all of the pieces. Well, we found it, and it was a good thing we did because there were others after it. And they didn't have as good of intentions for it as we did."

"What was the treasure?"

"The cup of Ankh," Nina admitted.

"I think I've heard of that. Mr. Winkler spoke of it in history class. Isn't it a cup that grants you eternal life?"

"That's exactly what it is," Patricia said. "And it's real. Everything about it is real."

"Even the eternal life part?"

"Yes." Mara looked at Patricia in shock. Eternal life was something that was only found in films and books, not in the real world.

"But what does that have to do with what's going on here?" Mara asked.

"Sibuna has another mystery to solve, and another treasure to find," Alfie said simply.

"It's too much to explain now, especially right here," Nina said softly. She glanced around her, making sure that no one was listening in on their conversation. "But, right now we're trying to solve this clue." She pulled out the faded piece of paper and handed it to Mara. "We know how crazy this sounds, but it's true." Mara opened the clue and read it slowly.

"We know it has something to do with King Midas and his daughter. But what we don't know is where the clue actually is. Jerome and I were trying to find something here on the island that has to do with King Midas, but we can't find much of anything useful on the internet.

Mara set the clue down on the table and thought for a moment. "Are all of the clues here in the house?"

"We're not sure. It could be anywhere on the island," Amber said.

"Well, that day we all went into the town, I had to go to the bank to get some money converted. There was a painting of King Midas there in the bank. I thought it was pretty clever, having a painting of King Midas in a bank. It was ironic in a way. That's the only King Midas thing I can think of."

The rest of Sibuna all looked at each other. The back of a painting would be the perfect place to hide a clue. There had been one back in Anubis house. "Mara, you might be on to something. Let's go check it out," Nina said happily. "Sibuna."

"Sibuna," everyone repeated.

"What does that mean? That hand gesture?" Mara asked.

"It's out sign for Sibuna," Patricia said simply. "So, how are we going to get to the bank?"

"We could always just say we're going to go visit Mick," Nina suggested. With unspoken agreement, everyone got up from the table and went inside. Amber, Mara and Alfie were still in their swimsuits, so they had to go change before they could go out clue hunting.

While they were upstairs Jerome went to stand by Nina. Quietly he whispered, "Do you think we did the right thing?"

"I don't know Jerome. I do know that we can trust Mara, she won't tell anyone about the mystery. I'm just afraid that the more people that know, the more danger we're all in." Jerome nodded and walked across the room to wait for Alfie. When the seven of them had assembled in the foyer, Philip walked in and looked at them curiously.

"Where are all of you headed off to?" he asked.

"We're going to go see Mick. He could probably use some cheering up right now," Mara lied smoothly.

"Do you want me to get someone to bring the car around?"

"That's all right, we'll walk. It's a nice day out," Fabian said. With a nod, Philip walked off, and the others all let out a collective sigh of relief.

The walk into town was spent with Mara asking dozens of questions about Sibuna, the mystery, and what had happened when they were at school. As they reached the road the bank was on Mara asked her final question. "Are you going to tell Mick about Sibuna?" This took the others by surprise. They hadn't even thought about telling Mick. "If the seven of us are in on it, he's going to suspect something is up."

"She has a point," Nina said. "There's no way we can all sneak around without Mick noticing."

"Well let's just wait until he's out of the hospital. It'll be too much for him to handle right now," Fabian suggested.

"I agree. We'll try to figure out how we're going to tell him," Patricia said as she quickened her pace to keep up with the others. The conversation ended there as the seven of them reached the front of the bank. It was a relatively small building, made of the same white stone as many of the other buildings in the town.

The front lawn was perfectly manicured, with rows of brightly colored flowers lining the path up to the front door. On the roof of the building, the blue and white flag of Greece billowed in the wind. "Let's see how well this will go," Patricia muttered. "It's not like we can just walk in and ask to see the back of a portrait."

"Leave that to me. I can be very good at distracting," Amber reassured.

"That doesn't make me feel any better," she retorted. With a mischievous grin, Amber walked right up the stairs and entered the bank. The rest of them followed closely behind. When they got inside, Amber was already halfway across the room.

Nina quickly noticed that the teller Amber was making her way over to the single teller in the entire bank. She guessed that there probably never were more than one or two people working in there at any given day. At one end of the room, there was a long counter where Amber was now standing. In the corner sat a small wooden desk that was littered with papers and books. A computer sat at one end of it, it's screen dark, a tell-tale sign that no one had been there for a while.

Sitting right between two large windows that overlooked the ocean, was the portrait that Mara had told them about. It showed a tall, old, bearded man holding in his arms a little girl. The man, who was obviously King Midas, looked devastated as he stared at the golden skin of the child. Around him sat dozens of items, such as a bowl, a plate of food and a fork, all made out of gold.

"Kalós írthate. Pós boró na sas voithíso?" the woman behind the counter asked. Everyone froze for a moment. None of them knew how to speak Greek. It didn't seem to faze Amber though; she leaned forward and began speaking to her in a low voice. With a startled look, the teller pushed a lock of black hair out of her face and beckoned for Amber to follow her. As the two were about to walk into the next room, Amber looked back at the others and mouthed, "Hurry."

Jerome and Alfie, being the tallest of the group, went over the painting and lifted it off of the wall. "Hurry up," Jerome grunted. He and Alfie worked to keep the painting balanced and Nina and Fabian ran behind it to try to find a clue. Patricia and Mara watched the doors to make sure that no one was coming.

"Fabian look!" Nina exclaimed. Etched on the back of the painting were some faded words. "Patricia! Get your phone." Ripping the cell from her pocket, Patricia handed it to Nina. As quickly as she could, Nina took a picture of the words.

"OK guys, let's get this back on the wall," Fabian said as he and Nina stepped away from it. With the help of everyone, Jerome and Alfie were able to get the painting back on the wall just as Amber and the bank teller came back into the room.

"I'm sorry I was not able to help you Miss Millington," the teller said in a thick Greek accent. "If you come back tomorrow, Chara will be here. She should be able to help you."

"That's quite all right Anna. I'll just ask my mum about it when I get back to the house. Have a good day." Amber waved cheerfully as she beckoned for the others to start walking out of the bank. The teller, Anna, watched as they left. Once the door shut the cheerful smile vanished. Her sharp hazel eyes glanced over at the painting.

Still staring at it, Anna picked up the phone and dialed a number. On the second ring a gruff voice snapped, "Ti?"

"Eínai mou. Ta paidiá ítan edó mólis tó̱ra. Xéroun."

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Back outside the seven Sibuna members found a secluded area to sit so they could look at the clue. "Mara, you're brilliant. Did you know that?" Amber asked.

"Yeah, who knows how long it would have taken us to find this if it wasn't for you," Nina added. Everyone grouped around Patricia as she opened up the picture on her phone. It was hard to see, but everyone was able to make out the faded letters.

"Cross the thálassa, and enter the home of the lame blacksmith to take what is yours from the head of his tool," Patricia read out loud.

"Well I'm lost. For starters, what the heck is a thálassa?" Jerome asked.

"I don't even know," Amber admitted. With a groan Jerome rolled his eyes and turned to face Nina and Fabian.

"You two are the best at figuring out stuff like this. Any ideas of how to handle it?" Fabian and Nina looked at each other, seemingly thinking the same thought.

"It's back to the library. The faster we get to work solving the clue, the sooner we'll find the next one," Nina said.

"What about Mick? I think we should go visit him. He's all alone there in the hospital," Amber said sadly. "And it is kinda our fault.

"I agree with Amber. We should stop by to pay him a visit," Mara agreed.

"Look why don't you four go see Mick while Fabian, Nina and I go back to get a head start on research?" Patricia suggested. No one argued back, so Patricia took that as everyone agreeing.

"We'll be back soon," Mara told them. Amber, Mara, Jerome and Alfie all began to walk down the road towards the hospital. Since the house was in the other direction the remaining three walked away from their friends.

As they walked Nina noticed how busy the market was that day. People seemed to be taking up every inch of available space. There were people going in and out of stores, sightseeing, talking, eating, sitting on benches, and some were simply standing in the middle of the road oblivious to what was going on around them. On several occasions the three of them got separated because people would walk right between them. Both Fabian and Nina could tell how uncomfortable the crowd was making Patricia. She hated tight, crowded places. "Let's just get out of here," Patricia said over the noise of the crowd. At long last they broke out of the crowd, and reached a much quieter street that went around the market. The people around them were much quieter, and there were fewer of them.

"Well that's better," Fabian said as he let out a long sigh. They still had a little ways to go before they reached the Millington estate and the heat of the day was making the walk miserable for all of them. As they reached an intersection the three of them had to wait for a light to change. As they waited Nina saw a car sitting at the top of a hill. It was a pretty average looking car, but one thing that she noticed was that it was running. She thought it was weird that someone would sit in a running car on the side of the road.

Just as the light was changing, Patricia bent down to tie her shoelace. "Go ahead and cross, I'll catch up," she said as she tugged on her laces. With a nod Fabian and Nina stepped into the road. Halfway across Nina heard the sound of screeching tires. Snapping her head to the right, she saw the car speeding right towards them, with no obvious intention of stopping.

"Fabian look out!" Nina screamed. He paused, and then noticed the car heading right towards him. Reacting instantly, Nina sprung forward and shoved Fabian out of the way just as the car would have hit him. The pair fell onto the hot cobblestone street.

Patricia reached the two of them in seconds. "Are you both all right?" she asked fearfully. She watched as her two friends shakily got to their feet.

"I think I'm all right," Nina said slowly. She moved around a bit, checking for any sign of pain. When everything felt normal she nodded and flashed a weak smile at Patricia.

"Same here," Fabian said. "Nina, if you hadn't done what you did then…well thank you." With a smile on his face he hugged Nina, who happily returned it.

"Did anyone get that car's license plate?" Patricia asked as Fabian and Nina let go of each other. With a chuckle, both Nina and Fabian shook their heads. The three of them then continued the walk back to the house. After a little bit, Nina motioned for Fabian to walk a little slower. Patricia didn't notice as the pair fell behind her a few feet.

"What's up?" Fabian whispered.

"Fabian, I'm getting a bad feeling about all of this. I don't think that car almost hitting you was an accident. I saw it sitting at the top of the hill while we were waiting for the light to change. I'm really starting to think that someone doesn't want us to find the treasure."

Slowly, Fabian nodded in agreement. "We'll all have to keep our guard up. This isn't like at school when the worst that could happen was getting a detention for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Whoever these guys are, they're playing for keeps."

"Then I think it's time to step up out game a notch. The problem is that we don't even know who it is that wants to get rid of us."

"Yeah, that's been worrying me too. Do you think it's time to make that phone call?" Nina's eyes widened as she realized what Fabian was talking about.

"Let's ask the others when they get back from visiting Mick," Nina whispered quickly. Fabian nodded and the two continued walking down the road, trying to catch up with Patricia.

The other members of Sibuna got back to the house right before supper. Mick too, had been discharged and was happy to be out of the hospital. When he walked in the front door, the first thing he did was go to find some food. His hand was heavily bandaged, so he was careful to not bump it into anything. As they were sitting at dinner Nina watched Mick eat. "So what exactly happened?" she asked the blonde boy.

Mick glanced up from his food. "I got bit," he said simply.

"By what?" Patricia asked.

"Yeah, you never told us at the hospital Mick," Amber reminded. Mick looked down at his plate and muttered something incoherently.

"Come again mate? We didn't quite hear you," Jerome teased.

"A sea turtle. I got bitten by a sea turtle. Happy? The bloody little thing thought I was food so it took a bite out of my hand," he yelled. The table fell silent; all eyes were on Mick as he went back to eating his supper. That had been the farthest idea from anyone's mind and no one knew how to respond to it. After a tense minute of silence normal conversation began again. Everything was just meaningless chitchat, but at some point the seven Sibuna members all locked eyes. They had a lot to talk about, and it was going to be hard with Mick around. It was in that split second that each of them knew they had to tell him.

"Mick," Fabian said slowly, "there's something we have to talk to you about." The seriousness in Fabian's voice made him stop eating and stare at his roommate. With one more reassuring look from the other Sibuna members, Fabian began to tell Mick about the treasure hunt.

It took well over an hour to explain everything to him, but at the end of it all Mick too, knew about Sibuna and the quest. They were all in on it now. "So why exactly did you guys decided to tell me all of this now?" Mick asked after a while.

"Circumstances. Mara found out by mistake, so we knew that there was no way the seven of us could keep it a secret without you knowing as well," Nina explained.

"So now we're all in on the mystery!" Amber exclaimed happily. "This makes things so much easier."

"Yeah, but now it's onto more important matters. Nina and I talked about this earlier today, but we wanted your opinions as well," Fabian said.

"We think that we should call Aspída," Nina said. She held up the business card Lazar had given them the day they met. Amber, Patricia and Alfie all looked at Nina and Fabian in surprise.

"Can we trust them?" Patricia asked.

"We're not sure. But things are getting serious. I didn't say anything earlier because there was never a chance to, but I think that someone tampered with the climbing equipment and that's why Amber almost fell. I saw footprints in the dirt. Footprints that didn't belong to any of us. Plus, as Nina, Patricia and I were coming back to the house a car tried to run us over."

"Wait? What? Are you guys all right?" Mara asked.

"We're all fine Mara, but we were lucky this time. We don't know who the enemy is or why they want to get rid of us. Maybe Aspída does," Nina told her.

"How bad could they be? After all, my dad was part of them," Amber pointed out. She glanced around at the others, knowing that she had a good point.

"Amber's right," Patricia said. "I still don't know how much we can trust these people, but they can give us answers we can't find out ourselves. So I think we should call them."

"I think we should too. It beats us running around like headless chickens," Jerome muttered. Mick and Mara both nodded, since they were the newest to the group, they didn't really know all that was going on. So, they just let the others deal with stuff like this.

Nina turned to the only person that hadn't put in an opinion. "Alfie?"

Alfie looked at each of his fellow group members, his friends. "Who's phone are we gonna use?" he asked.

* * *

**So who was expecting all of that to happen? I dub Grace, my ever faithful #1 fan with a virtual cookie for being the clostest into what bit Mick. Way to go Grace! And now time for more questions that I want all of you to answer in reviews. **

**#1-Who do you think tried to run over Fabian? **

**#2-What could the clue mean?**

**#3-Will Fabian and Nina ever get together?**

**I know all of these answers, but I want to know what *you* think so let me know! **

**One last note- if you are like me and don't know Greek, do what I do and use google translate to figure out what people are saying. In fact, here's the like for those of you who are curious (and dedicated) enough to look it up. **

**http:/translate. (removethispartandthespaces) /#auto|el|**

**Let me know if the link doesn't work and I'll send it to you in a PM! Peace out (again)**

**~Wolfie**


	20. House of Shock

**I feel on a role with these chapters! As usual, I had a lot of fun writing this chapter. Then again, I have fun writing this story in general. I have some important things to say at the end of this chapter so for now just enjoy the chapter.**

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Chapter 20 House of Shock

"Maybe this was a mistake," Nina hissed as the group of eight stood in front of a tall office building. "There's still a chance to forget this whole thing and just go back."

"We're already here. They know that we know something. Or else we wouldn't have called them. It's too late now," Patricia replied firmly. With very little hesitation, Patricia walked up to the sliding glass door of the building and vanished inside. Jerome, Alfie and Amber followed shortly behind her. Mara glanced over at Mick, obviously nervous about the whole thing. With a nod from Mick, the pair walked into the building.

Fabian turned to face Nina and gave her a reassuring smile. "It'll be ok Nina. They said they would help us, remember?"

"Hopefully they actually meant it." Chuckling, Fabian gestured for Nina to take the lead, and together they walked inside where the others stood waiting for them.

Based on the décor, Nina would have never guessed it was the center of operation for an ancient, secret society. Polished emerald tiles covered the entire floor, which reflected the image of a crystal chandelier that hung in t he center of the room. The walls were made of smooth white marble, and evenly spaced along them were portraits of different Greek gods and goddesses. It looked more like the building the government would work out of, not some regular old office building.

To the right of the door sat a long desk made out of the marble as the walls. Behind it sat a young girl, probably around twenty years old, who was staring intently at a computer screen. As the automatic doors closed, the girl looked up in surprise. She stared at the eight teens for a moment before her eyes finally widened in understanding.

She quickly beckoned for them to come over to the desk. With a warm smile she said, "Mr. Tanzir has been expecting all of you. If you would all just take a seat over there I will let him know that you are here." She gestured to a series of plush, red sofas that sat in the corner of the room.

As they went to go sit down Fabian leaned over to Nina and whispered, "Well she was friendly." Nina looked back at the girl, who was talking on the phone, and nodded. Not long after they sat down the ding echoed through the room. The door to an elevator opened and a man stepped out. He seemed to be older, it was impossible to miss the patch of gray on the top of his head that stood out against his vey dark hair.

"My dear children! Welcome!" he boomed happily. As he got closer, Nina noticed that while his skin and hair may show signs of age, his eyes did not. His steel-gray eyes popped against his mocha colored skin, and they seemed to be abundant with life and joy. They were the eyes of a man who had seen many blessings in his life, and who wished to share those blessings with others. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Halim Tanzir." His smile unfading, Halim shook hands with all of the Sibuna members.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Tanzir," Amber said as he shook her hand.

"My dear Miss Millington, the pleasure is all mine. Your father is a dear friend of mine, and he spoke very fondly of you." Amber smiled at the mention of her father. Letting go of her hand, Halim turned to address the girl sitting behind the counter. "Delia, if you would, please cancel all of my meetings and calls for today. These young people have waited long enough for some answers and I intend to give them what they came for."

"Yes sir, Mr. Tanzir," the girl, Delia told him. She then turned her attention back to the desk and began furiously typing away at the computer.

"Now, let's get this meeting underway." Halim ushered everyone towards the elevator. "Half of you will have to take the second elevator I'm afraid. Protocol and all of that." He pointed to an identical set of silver doors about three feet away. Nina, Fabian, Mara and Jerome all sidestepped to towards the second elevator. They watched as the remained five people in the group got on and they waited for their door to open.

With a ding the doors slid open, and the four teens stepped inside. "What floor are we supposed to go to?" Mara asked. She glanced over at the button panel to find that there was only one button.

"Well that was easy," Jerome said as he pressed the little black button. With a lurch the elevator began to move, but instead of going up like they thought it would it went down. It went down for quite a long while. When the elevator finally came to a stop, the four of them all thought that it would never stop. As the doors slid open, Halim and the others were all waiting for them.

The place they were now in looked nothing like the decorative lobby they had just left. This room, which Nina thought seemed more like a chamber, was rather dark and dreary. The decorative marble floors and walls was now simple, cool clay. Naturally there were no windows, but instead for light dozens of plain, white candles were arranged in a large arc around the room.

The center of the room was designed like a stadium. The very center of the room was the lowest point, and the rows of seats went down to it like a set of stairs. A group of seven people sat in the seats, completely silent. Each of them was dressed in simple, white, tunics and brown leather sandals. The scene looked like something right out of ancient Greece.

In the dim light, Nina was able to make out several familiar faces. Adriane was sitting at the far side of the room, with Lazar sitting next to her. A few feet away, Darien Petridis sat, his head bent down. He seemed to be whispering something silently to himself. Across from him were two people that Nina didn't recognize. There was a man with thick red hair, and next to him was a woman with long caramel hair that was tied back in a braid.

The last person in the room was sitting with his back to the group, so Nina was unable to see his face. His clothing was different than the others though, around his neck was a golden colored plate covered with sparking jewels. It stretched across the span of his shoulders and seemed to be held in place on the shoulders with small gold fastenings.

Halim, who had somehow changed into tunic that matched the others', took a seat beside Darien. He nodded slightly at the man with his back to the group. Slowly, he stood up and turned to face the amazed teens. When Nina saw his face, she gasped slightly. It was the same old man from the ruins, the one who told her that they were in danger if they stayed in Greece.

Using the same walking stick he had the day Nina first saw him, he hobbled over to the group. "Welcome. I have heard many things about you, Sibuna," he said. With widening eyes, the eight teens all looked at each other. How did he know about Sibuna? "Come." He went back to where he was sitting and eased himself into it. Cautiously, the eight teens entered the miniature stadium and sati n a big group across from the withered man.

"We had a feeling you would be contacting us soon," Darien said.

"There are more of you now then when we first met," Adriane added. The old mad held up his hand and the two adults fell silent.

"There will be time for all of that later. I believe right now some introductions are in order. I am Orrin. You have already met Darien, Lazar, Adriane and Halim." Orrin gestured to each member of Aspída as he introduced them. "This is Professor Alix Kelly and his wife Sofia." Orrin gestured to the remaining two people in the room.

"We've been waiting to meet all of you," Alix said, unable to hide his thick Irish accent. Sofia nodded but remained silent.

"Look, not to be rude or anything, but can we just get to the point of why we're here?" Jerome finally asked. Orrin looked at the irritated teen in surprise.

"Yes. Well, you are the ones who contacted us, so by all means do tell us why you are here," Orrin said sternly. Giving Jerome a small scowl, Nina stood up and pulled the Aspída ring out of her bag.

Holding it up for everyone to see Nina said, "This is the ring that Lazar and Adriane told us about. We've been following the clues, but things are becoming too much for us to handle. That's why we're here. We need to know if you can help us."

"When did you find that?" Lazar asked.

"Not long after we all met for the first time. You asked us if we had ever seen an Aspída ring before. I told you that we hadn't but that wasn't true. I found one the night Mr. Millington disappeared, but it wasn't the one with the clue on it. We found this one on the third floor of the Millington mansion a few nights later." Stepping forward, Nina handed the ring to Orrin to examine. He held it in his hand, looking in awe at it.

He then passed it around the circle to the other Aspída members. As they looked at it, Nina took her seat. With a nod to Fabian he began to speak. "So far we've found three clues. The first one, on the back of the ring, led us to a rock crevice on the side of the cliff. That clue then led us to the portrait in the bank of King Midas. Unfortunately, we haven't figured out the newest clue."

"And right now, we're afraid that we won't get the chance to figure it out," Patricia interrupted. "We think that there's someone out there who doesn't want us solving the clues. Amber almost fell to her death trying to get the clue out of the rock. Plus, yesterday Fabian and Nina were almost run over as we were leaving town. Any thoughts on who might be doing this?"

Patricia crossed her arms and looked at each of the Aspída members. All seven of them had fear etched on their faces. Darien was nervously twiddling his thumbs. Lazar had taken out his handkerchief and was dabbing his forehead. Sofia was clutching the arm of her husband. All of them looked incredibly guilty of knowing something, but none of them seemed willing to speak up.

"Well? Are you going to tell us?" Mick asked. Finally, Alix stood up and walked over to the teens. He stood before them, looking menacing in the flickering light of the candles.

"Paidiá tou Érevos. The children of Erebus. That's what they call themselves," he whispered in a low voice.

"Who's Erebus?" Mara asked.

"The god of darkness," Sofia finally said. "They are a society as old as Aspída, but with much darker intentions."

"And these are the people who kidnapped my father?" Amber asked. Sofia nodded grimly.

"So we need to figure out where they are keeping him and try to get him back, Mick suggested.

"It's a bit more complicated than that young man," Lazar snapped. "If we aren't careful, we could all end up dead. These people are not afraid to kill whoever gets in their way."

"That's why we want you kids to not be involved in this any more than you have to. So if you would, just give us the clue and we will take it over from here. If you aren't involved with the search, you will not be in any danger," Orrin told them. Nina looked over at Fabian and Patricia. They weren't expecting this to happen. Now they were faced with a choice—see this mystery through and risk death, or back out now and be home free.

"Forget it." Everyone turned in shock to see Amber standing up, glaring at Orrin. "These people took my dad away from me. Do you honestly think that I'm going to sit back and do nothing? If you do, you're sadly mistaken. I'm a Millington, and we never back away in fear. We could use your help, but if you expect us to give you all that we've worked for and leave, well we'll all just leave right now. The choice is yours."

Everyone in the room seemed too shocked for words. None of the Sibuna members had ever heard Amber speak out like that. She was like a whole new person. The members of Aspída seemed just as surprised. Darien was the first to recover from the shock. "Amber, you make a very valid point. Unfortunately, your father would not be very pleased to know that you had put yourself in danger like this. The whole reason he never told you about us was so he could keep you safe."

"Well that was very noble of him. But I think I'm capable of making my own decisions. So, I've decided that I'm going to help solve this mystery and save my father, whether you all want me to or not."

"I'm with Amber," Nina said as she stood up with her friend. Amber flashed a grateful smile at her American friend.

"Me too." Fabian stood up next to the girls. Following the lead of the others, Patricia, Jerome, Alfie, Mick and Mara all stood up.

"You people didn't get the memo, but we all stick together," Patricia said firmly. Orrin looked at the eight young people standing before him. For a brief moment, frustration flashed across his eyes but it was soon replaced by understanding.

"Loyalty. That is an important thing to have. Hold onto it. You will need it in trials to come. Remember that. All right. For the time being, Aspída and Sibuna will join forces to bring down these demons of darkness once and for all."

"Patricia, do you want to read them the clue?" Amber asked as they all took their seats. With a nod Patricia opened her phone and the screen illuminated the area.

"Cross the thálassa, and enter the home of the lame blacksmith to take what is yours from the head of his tool."

"Does that mean anything to you guys?" Alfie asked as Patricia shut her phone.

"Thálassa means sea. So the first part is telling you to cross the sea," Sofia said as she processed the parts of the clue.

"It's a reference to Hephaestus, the god of fire. He was a blacksmith," Darien explained.

"And according to one legend, he was thrown from Olympus by his mother, Hera, because he was lame," Adriane added. Nina, and the other Sibuna members, watched in amazement as these people pieced together the clue in a matter of minutes. It would have taken them hours to figure out what all of it meant.

"So is there a statue of this Hephaestus on the island?" Jerome asked. With a shake of his head, Alix stood up and crossed the room to where a wooden table was standing. He picked up a scroll from it and held it up for them all to see.

The group got up from their seats and went to examine the piece of parchment. It was a map of some sorts. "This is an old map of the Dodecanese islands, which this island is part of. We are here on the island of Rhodes," Alix pointed to a small dot on the right side of the map. "Now while there is nothing to do with Hephaestus here on this island, he is quite important right here." Alix pointed to another, much smaller dot, to the northwest of Rhodes. "The island of Nisyros. It is a volcanic island that is about a three hour journey from here by car and ferry."

"That's why the clue said 'across the sea'. It's not on this island," Nina exclaimed.

"So how do we get to it then?" Patricia asked.

"We can take my helicopter," Halim offered. "In fact, we can go tomorrow."

"We all won't be able to go without my mum and the servants becoming suspicious," Amber pointed out.

"Then I guess only some of us will be able to go," Patricia said. The eight Sibuna members all looked at each other. "Should we split it four and four?"

"Sounds fair," Fabian agreed. "Anyone want to go climbing around a volcano?"

"I'll do it," Mara offered.

"Same here," Jerome added in. He looked over at Mara and she could have sworn she saw a flicker of a smile on his face.

"If Jerome goes, I'll go too," Alfie chimed in. "Ambs? Do you want to come?" The blonde bit her lip, thinking deeply. After a few seconds she nodded vigorously.

"Well all right then. If the four of you could come here by ten o'clock tomorrow morning, we could be on our way shortly after," Halim said happily.

"I think we have discussed all that we need to for now. If anything else happens, please call us kids. We are going to do everything we can to help and protect you," Orrin said. "But still, proceed on your way with caution. Do not be distracted by one head of the Hydra."

"We'll be careful. We always are," Nina reassured.

Orrin nodded at the girl. "Lazar, would you please show them out?" With a nod, the man stood up and motioned for everyone to follow him. The group split into the dual elevators again. This time with Lazar, Nina, Fabian, Patricia and Amber rode in one and Jerome, Mara, Mick and Alfie in the other.

"Lazar?" Nina asked as they were making their ascent. "How did Orrin know about Sibuna?" The short man smiled at her.

"As I told you before my dear, the eyes of Argus are everywhere. Not all of the eyes see for enemy." There was a twinkle in his eyes as the elevator doors slid open and he gestured for everyone to get off. "We shall be in contact soon children," he told them as the doors began to close again.

"I swear if someone calls me a child one more time, I'm going to lose it," Jerome grumbled as he and the others came up beside their friends. Everyone laughed as Alfie smacked Jerome on the back.

"Ambs, I have to say, that was very impressive how you stood up to those guys," Mick admitted. The eight of them began to walk out of the building, waving to Diana as they passed. The sun was much lower in the sky than when they had arrived at the headquarters.

"Hey guys," Mara asked, "why don't we eat supper here in town? With all that's been going on we've hardly had a chance to do anything together."

"Sounds like fun. It might do us all some good to get our minds off the mystery for a few hours. There's not much we can do until tomorrow anyways," Nina agreed. The eight walked around for a while, trying to find somewhere to eat.

At one point, Alfie spotted a little restaurant that seemed to be fairly popular. They all decided that it was as good as any place so they went inside. "Hey there," the waitress, a teen about their age said. "How many in the party?"

"Eight," Fabian replied. The girl looked down at a seating chart and frowned slightly.

"I don't have any tables large enough for all of you right now. But I can split you up four and four if you're all right with that." Without really waiting for an answer, the girl led them out onto the patio, where several other people were already sitting at square, cast iron tables. The waitress stopped in front of two tables and waited for everyone to sit down. "Your server will be right with you," she told them. Nina, Fabian, Alfie and Mara had taken the first table while Jerome, Patricia, Mick and Amber all sat next to them. For a few minutes, there was silence as the teens looked over the menu, trying to figure out what they wanted to eat.

A few minutes later a young man came up to their table. He had a nametag pinned to his shirt that read 'Adrian'. With a cheery smile he looked at the two table and pulled out a pen and a pad of paper. "Hello there everyone. I'm Adrian; I'll be your server. Can I start you all off with something to drink?"

"I'll have a raspberry ice," Mara said as she glanced at the drink section.

"Same here," Nina added.

"I'll have some water," Fabian said without looking up.

"Something that has caffeine in it. I'm not too picky as to what," Alfie said. Adrian nodded then went to the other table to get drink orders.

"So anything look good to you," Fabian asked Nina while Mara and Alfie discussed if caffeine was good for a person's health or not.

"Yeah actually. The lamb chops with the lemon, oregano and pepper. I'm not even going to try pronouncing its name." Fabian laughed as Nina pointed to the picture of the dish on her menu.

"I think I'm going to get this." Fabian pointed to a description on the menu. It was something else that Nina couldn't pronounce, but the description said that is was fried meatballs with oregano and mint. A little while later Adrian came back with a tray full of drinks. As he set down the drinks in front of Mara and Nina he gave a little wink to both of them. As he walked away, the two girls looked at each other in surprise.

"Well that wasn't weird at all," Mara commented.

Nina looked over at Patricia and Amber, who were both watching the waiter walk away as well. "Did he do to you what he did to us?" she asked. Both girls nodded and Nina looked back to see Adrian speaking to two other customers. Naturally, they were both girls and it was more than obvious that he was flirting with them. With a quick glance back at Fabian she shrugged. He in turn rolled his eyes, and then went back to looking at the menu.

A little while later, Adrian came back to the table to take their orders. Nina ordered the lamb chops, Fabian got the fried meatballs, Mara decided to have a tossed garden salad, and Alfie got some sort of fried shellfish. Nina listened as Adrian took the orders of the others.

"I'll have what she had," Amber said as she pointed to Mara.

"Can I get this pork dish?" Patricia asked as she pointed to her menu.

"Same here," Mick added. "But I'll have mine without tomatoes."

Adrian stood there, waiting, as Jerome took one last look over the menu. "All right, I'll have this. The Pastitsio, or whatever it's called. There's no chance of it being near shellfish is there?"

Adrian paused for a moment, thinking. "Well I don't cook the food but I'll the guys in the back to keep it away from any shellfish. Do you have an allergy?" Jerome nodded. "All right, I'll make sure to tell them to be careful." Adrian walked off, this time without hitting on any of the girls.

"Jerome I didn't know you were allergic to shellfish," Nina commented from across the table.

"I have been ever since I was little," he replied casually. Nina shrugged and turned her attention back to the people at her table. She, Fabian and Mara got into a long discussion about the ruins and how they would like to make another trip up there before they left Greece. By the time the food came, they had already convinced Alfie to come along with them the next time they had a chance to go up there.

As Adrian set down Nina and Mara's plates, he also set a piece of paper down next to each of them. "Why don't you ladies take that with you?" he asked.

Nina looked down at the piece of paper and saw a phone number sprawled out on it. Sighing, she rolled up the piece of paper into a ball and held it out to Fabian. "You have a better arm than I do," she told him. Eagerly, Fabian took the ball of paper and chucked it right at Adrian. It hit him right in the back of his head, and when he turned to see what it was both Fabian and Nina ducked their heads down while they tried to suppress their laughter.

"JEROME!" Patricia suddenly cried out. Nina and Fabian snapped their heads back up to see what was wrong. Jerome was sitting in his chair, clutching his neck, his eyes practically popping out of his head. It looked like he was trying to get a breath, but all he could get were short little puffs of breath.

"Oh my God!" Mara yelled as she jumped out of her chair. Alfie, too, was out of his chair and beside his fried in an instant. Everyone in the restaurant stopped to see what the commotion was about. Nina could feel a tight know growing in her stomach as she watched her friend struggle for air. Everything happened so quickly. One second Jerome was sitting his chair gasping for breath, and then all the sudden he had fallen out of his chair practically unconscious.

"Jerome, your pen. Where is it?" Alfie yelled at his friend. Almost unable to move, Jerome motioned with his hand down towards his front left pocket. Snatching forward, Alfie reached into Jerome's pocket and pulled out a thin plastic tube. Written in black letters on the side was the word 'EpiPen'. Once Alfie had it in his hand he paused for a brief second, unsure of what to do with it.

Ripping the medication from Alfie's hand, Mara yelled, "Move over!" She pulled the cap off of the tube and jammed it into Jerome's leg. For several seconds after that, Jerome didn't move. There was no sign of breathing coming from their friend and Nina feared for the worst. Choking back a sob, Nina turned and buried her face in Fabian's shoulder. She couldn't bear to look at Jerome like that.

Amber too, was fighting back tears that threatened to spill over from her eyes. "I'm calling an ambulance," someone finally said. A man wearing a t-shirt with the word Olympiacos F.C. written on the front of it pulled out a cell phone and began dialing.

"Wait! Look!" Mara cried out. Everyone froze as they watched Jerome's chest slowly rise and fall. Blinking heavily, Jerome opened his eyes and lifted his head.

"I don't know who made this mattress, but I'm filing a complaint. This is horribly uncomfortable," he grumbled. Leaning up more, Jerome looked around and finally noticed his surroundings. "What am I doing on the floor?"

"You went into anaphylactic shock, and I injected you with your EpiPen," Mara said breathlessly.

"But the only thing that could have done that was…"

"Shellfish?" Fabian asked. He was examining Jerome's plate. Taking a fork, he cut a piece of the pasta dish and tasted it. "Jerome, I don't think this is what you ordered. This tastes like lobster." Fabian took another bite and nodded. "Somehow, lobster got into your food." The eight teens looked at each other nervously. This was no doubt another attempt to get rid of them.

"I think we should go," Amber finally said. "Jerome, do you feel all right? I can call for someone to bring the car down here so we don't have to walk back."

"That's not a bad idea Amber. Who knows what could happen to us if we walk all the way back to the house," Nina said nervously. As Amber dialed a number in her phone, Nina did a 180 spin around the restaurant. Everyone had gone back to eating their meals one Jerome got up and seemed to be all right. That didn't make her feel any better though. Any person they can across could potentially want them all dead. They were running out of time. Sibuna had to get the next clue. Fast.

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**Okey doke, long winded A/N time. Woohoo. **

**My first order of business. The link that I tried to give all of you in the last chapter. I didn't work. Yeah I know and I'm sorry. So to make it easier, here's the conversation that happened in the last chapter. **

** The first line that Anna says is "Wecome. How can I help you?"**

** Later on the conversation on the phone between Anna and only-I-know-who goes like this. "What?" "It's me. Those kids just left here. They know." **

**So yeah, that's it on that mess. Again, so sorry about the difficulty. **

**Order of business number 2. The questions from the last chapter. So many of you left really great reviews. I love getting them. Those of you who guessed correctly on qiestion number 2. Congrats! You get...ummmmm...a half chewed banana. (hehehe Mimber moment.)Anywho, I really loved some of these reviews. Oh and Grace, since I know that you will read this, since you read and review all my chapters, you should totally get an account so I can actually repply to your reviews. They're always so sweet and I love getting them from you and I would love to reply and thank you for all the nice things you say about my story. You're a rocking number 1 fan! **

**Lastly. Review. Tell your friends to read...and review. Tell your mom. Tell your dad. Tell your brothers and sisters. Tell your grandma. Tell you local neighborhood hobo. (Well ok don't do the last one cuz most hobos don't use the computer. so yeah, get people you know that you think would like this story and tell them to read and review it.**

**Oh actaully, that wasn't my last thing to say. The whole Jerome insident, I don't know how accurate I was on everything that happened. I did some research but since the reactions are different for everyone, I just kinda guessed what a good reaction would be. If I did something wrong when describing the shellfish reaction and you know what it is, please tell me so that I can fix it for next time. **

**OK that really is my last thing. Peace out!**

**~Wolfie - kidding that was my last thing to say.**

**Or was it?**


	21. House of Angst

**So I freaking loved writing this chapter. It made me sooooooo happy and I know it will make a lot of you happy as well. And I have something I need to say. Some of you may have head this but, last night in the House of Anubis general discussion we had an issue with a troll. This person, I will not be giving a name of who it was, said some terrible things about our dear friend Whispering Memories, aka Icy. I won't even repeat what was said about her becasue there were some very inappropriate things said about her. The situtation has been resolved, but I feel the need to say that if any of you ever have a problem with someone being a cybrbully, report them. Like that day. And if you ever have to, hopefully you won't, give as much evidence as possible. Cyberbullies are not welcome here. And let that be a warning to an cyberbullies who are reading this. I, along with many others I know, will not tolerate it and are not afraid to take action about it. That's all I have to sy until my A/N the end of the chapter. I hope you all enjoy chapter 21!**

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Chapter 21: House of Angst

"Amber, does she ever blink?" Jerome whispered across the table. Turning her head slightly, Amber saw Leto looking at the eight teens. Every few minutes Leto would walk onto the patio and watch them as they sat there. She never said anything, she just watched.

"I'm assuming so," the blonde replied wearily. Realizing what she was thinking, Amber shook her head violently. How could she ever doubt Leto? The woman, as stone faced as she was, had worked for the Millington family for as long as Amber could remember. Her father trusted her, so Amber would as well. Despite her strange behavior the past few days.

Nina noticed that Amber was spacing out so she tapped on the table to bring her friend back to the present. "Sorry," Amber said sheepishly.

"All right, let's get back on topic. After what happened today it's more obvious than ever that someone doesn't want us around," Nina began.

"Are you just realizing this now? After what? Three near death experiences?" Jerome retorted. Before he could say anything else, a look of pain twisted itself onto his face. "What was that for Patricia?" he sneered, glaring at the girl.

"For being annoying. Now shut up and let Nina talk."

"Thank you Patricia. Now, as I was saying, since we don't know when or where these people will try to attack next I think it might be best for us to always travel in groups. We have a better chance that way."

"I agree with Nina," Fabian added.

"Of course you do," Jerome grumbled under his breath. Nina and Fabian glared at him, while their faces turned a growing shade of red.

Alfie, who was sitting next to Jerome turned to look at him and said, "Jerome, what's going on with you tonight? Chill out mate."

"Oh I'm sorry Alfie; I thought that I was allowed to be a little irritable after almost dying." He snapped out the word dying with such force that it caused Alfie to reel back in surprise. "You know what? Forget this. I'm out of here. Have fun with your little meeting." Jerome stood up from the table and stormed inside the house.

Nobody was sure how to respond to that. "Should someone go like, talk to him?" Mick asked. "To make sure he doesn't do anything stupid that could get him killed?"

"Mara you go," Alfie suggested. "I don't think he could get mad at you if he wanted to."

"Oh I don't know about that," Mara stated, "but I'll try anyways. You all keep talking. I'll see if I can get him to come back out." With one last look at her friends, Mara crossed through the doorway and began to search for Jerome. He wasn't in the living room, the kitchen, the library, or anywhere on the first floor for that matter.

Having a good guess of where Jerome was Mara ran up the stairs two at a time. When she reached his bedroom door there was no sound coming from the other side of it. With a slight tap to announce that she was there, Mara pushed the door open and slipped inside. There were no lights on in the room, so the only way to see was the pale glow of the moon that shone through the window.

Standing in front of it was the lone figure of Jerome. He didn't even turn around as Mara crossed the room and went to stand next to him. "They told you to come up here didn't they?" he finally said. His eyes didn't waver from the view outside the window.

"Yes."

"Well you might as well go back downstairs and tell them I'm not coming down."

"Jerome, please just talk to me. What's wrong?" Mara pleaded. She lightly placed her hand on his arm, but he pulled away at her touch. "Jerome."

Tearing his eyes away from the window Jerome looked down at Mara. The look on her face surprised him. It wasn't annoyance like he thought it was going to be. It was fear. "I don't want to talk about it Mara." He was trying to push her away, to get her to leave him alone, but he knew better. He knew that it wouldn't work. Not on her.

Mara didn't say anything to him. She just looked at him. Jerome felt himself getting lost in her big, brown eyes. There was something comforting about her eyes, like the eyes of someone he once knew. Like someone he once loved, a long time ago. "What won't you tell us?" Mara finally whispered. "Jerome, you can tell me anything. You know you can. We're friends."

He couldn't look at her. The very sight of her made him want to unlock the door to his heart. He wanted to tell her, but he just couldn't. He told himself years ago that he would never admit it to anyone. But now it was getting hard. The lock on his heart was about to break, and it was all because of Mara. She was the first person to ever truly care about him. The door couldn't stay shut anymore.

With every part of his body shaking he choked out the words, "I'm scared. I don't think I've ever been more scared in my life." He took a deep breath as he studied Mara's face. He wasn't sure how she was going to react to his little confession. After all, he was Jerome Clarke—the prankster, the class clown, the jerk, the guy with the 'holier than thou' attitude. He wasn't supposed to be scared. It wasn't part of who he was.

"I would think you were mad if you weren't," Mara replied softly. "Jerome, you don't have to ashamed your afraid. I'm afraid too. It's nothing you have to hide from us. I haven't stopped being afraid since I found out about all of this."

"You're you Mara. If the others found out you were afraid, they wouldn't think any less of you."

"And you think the others would think less of you?" Jerome's gaze dropped as he nodded ever so slightly. "Jerome, we're your friends. We would never think less of you."

"That's what you think the others would do Mara."

"OK so what if they did? When have you ever cared of what others think of you?"

"Just because I don't act like it doesn't mean that I don't care. Do you know what it's like to feel like no one cares about you? To go through life wondering that if you died that day, if anyone would even care."

"Of course they would Jerome! You just can't see it. We all care about you." Mara went to move closer to Jerome, and this time he didn't move away. "I care about you." Jerome felt his breath freeze in his throat as Mara continued. "Today when you were lying there, not moving and not breathing, I thought that we had lost you. I had never felt more afraid of anything in my life. I, I don't know what I would have done if you had died."

A minute of silence passed between the two of them. Each was trying to process everything that had just been said. Finally, Jerome found the courage to speak up. "Thank you Mara." The dark haired girl opened her mouth to reply but before she had the chance to, Jerome wrapped his arms around her in a hug. Her words forgotten, Mara returned the hug.

When the embrace ended Jerome tried to regain some of his composure. "Mara, can I tell you something?"

"Of course Jerome. You can tell me anything."

"You have to promise to never tell a soul." Mara nodded, waiting for what Jerome had to say. He took a deep breath and softly said, "I thought I was going to die today. But, rather than me thinking about all the things I never got to do with my life I thought about something completely different."

"What was it?"

"I thought that Fabian and Nina better talk to each other about how they feel because who knows if we're going to get out of this alive. I realized that I didn't want them to go through life without saying I love you to the person they truly love. And just as I thought it was over for me, I regretted not saying it to the girl I love."

"You love someone? Who?" Mara asked. Jerome looked at Mara and in the dim light she could make out the traces of a smirk etched upon his mouth.

"You."

That one single word echoed in Mara's ears. Jerome was in love with her? Her mind raced as she tried to figure out how to respond to that. In her wildest dreams, Mara would have never guessed Jerome was in love with her. Before she had a chance to even think about responding, Jerome leaned down to her and kissed her. With that, Mara's brain went numb. The only thought that could go through her head was that she cared a lot more about Jerome than she thought she did. Maybe she even loved him.

All of the pieces began to click together in that moment. Why he was so nice to her at school, why he was so angry when she was with Mick, all of it. She felt so stupid for not seeing it before. Then, as quickly as the kiss began, it was over. Jerome looked at Mara in fear and backed away slowly. "I'm sorry," he mumbled.

"Don't be." Jerome looked over at her in surprise. "I haven't fully figured out how I feel about this yet, but I do know I liked it." Mara stood on her toes and lightly pecked Jerome on the cheek. "And I know I care about you so much Jerome. So if you can give me a little bit of time to sort this all out, I'll let you know how I feel very soon. All right?" Jerome smiled and nodded slightly.

"You know, the others are probably wondering why we haven't come down yet," Jerome wondered out loud.

"Probably. We might as well head down there. They won't be too happy with me if I come down without you. Are you OK with going down there though?" Rather than responding, Jerome laced his fingers through Mara's and gripped her hand tightly.

"I think I'll be all right." Hand in hand, the pair crossed the room and made their way out to the patio. Mara was sure that Jerome would let go of her hand as soon as they were in sight of their friends, but he didn't. Jerome too, was thinking that Mara would drop his hand. So, the two walked up to their friends still holding hands.

At first no one seemed to notice, they were all listening to Nina talking about some theory she had about something or other. During the conversation, Amber just happened to look up and seen Mara and Jerome standing there. Still holding hands. "OMG," she practically shrieked. Naturally everyone turned to see what Amber was shrieking about.

Nina stopped speaking mid-word as if she was completely frozen. Fabian looked back and forth from Mara to Jerome in shock, as if he thought he was imagining things. Amber was practically jumping up and down in her seat with a huge grin on her face. Patricia looked slightly amused, but completely understanding at the same time. Alfie was stammering, trying to get some sort of coherent word out of his mouth. Sitting at the end of the table was Mick, and he didn't look happy. At all. He actually looked like he was going to kill Jerome.

"Sorry it took us so long," Mara apologized as she sat down in her original seat. Jerome took his seat next to Alfie, who was still stammering. "What were you talking about before we came in Nina?"

"Oh, um, I was just talking about the clues that we've found so far. And if there was some sort of connection to their locations. Back at Anubis House, all of the clues were in everyday items-like the telescope and the grandfather clock."

"And I was telling her," Patricia interrupted, "that there probably no connection since so far all of the places have been really random and really spread out over the island. At school, everything was inside the house somewhere. This is all too sporadic."

"But clues aren't necessarily based on location," Alfie argued back. "Like in mystery novels, they could be connected by anything."

"Thank you Alfie. I'm just saying it's something we shouldn't dismiss as impossible," Nina stated.

"Look," Amber said as she stretched, "I'm getting really tired. Let's get some sleep. After all, some of us are going clue hunting in the morning."

"Good point Amber. All right, we might as call it a night. Sibuna?"

"Sibuna." The eight teens got up from the table and began making their way inside. Amber and Patricia both walked alongside Mara and the three of them began whispering in low voices. Alfie and Jerome were doing the same thing. Mick on the other hand, pushed past all of them and stormed up the stairs and out of sight.

As Nina was about to turn to go up the stairs, Fabian grabbed her arm to stop her. She looked at him curiously as the others all passed the two on the stairs. "What's up?" she asked when the others were all at the top of the staircase.

"Your theory about the clues being connected. I think you might be right," he whispered. "Come on, there's something I want to show you." He took Nina's hand and led her quickly into the library.

When Fabian was sure that the room was empty he ran over to one of the bookshelves and pulled a red book off of the shelf. It was the book that Fabian had purchased the day they all went into town. He flipped through its contents until he came to a specific page. "With the first two clues I didn't really think anything of this, but when we found the last one, I began thinking if this was the connection."

Fabian handed her the book and she gazed at the page. "Klasiká stoicheía, the four classical elements of the world. I don't get it Fabian."

"The four classical elements were what ancient scientists thought out planet was made from—earth, air, fire and water. They believe that all things came from those four elements. What was the first clue about?"

"Poseidon. Who was the god of water," Nina said with understanding spreading across her face. "And in the clue we just found, Hephaestus was the god of fire and volcanoes. But what about the second clue? About King Midas. Gold isn't one of the four elements."

"That's what stumped me as well. It's the reason I didn't suspect this to be the tie from the beginning. Now this is a stretch, but it might be possible. Where does gold come from?"

"It's mined out of…the earth. And earth is one of the four classical elements. Fabian, you're a genius!" Fabian grinned and opened his mouth to say something, but a sudden noise caught him by surprise. The sounds of footsteps were coming close to the library, so Fabian and Nina scrambled to find a good hiding place. To their right was a waist high shelf lined with encyclopedias. It was the best hiding place they could find, and they made it there just in time.

As they ducked their heads down, a door in the back of the room creaked open. Slowly, Nina pushed two books apart on the shelf and tried to see who was there in the room. She had to suppress a gasp as she watched Leto and Philip standing in the room, glaring intently at each other. "Whatever it is you're planning, it won't work," Philip hissed in a low voice. "There's nothing that you can do so give up now old woman."

"What makes you think I'm planning anything?" Leto asked back. Her dark eyes seemed to pierce through Philip like spears, because he seemed taken aback for a moment.

"Your phone conversations are a dead giveaway. That and you won't take your eyes of the children. I see you watching them, their every move."

"You better watch your mouth boy. I'm not a person you want to oppose. This conversation is over, and if I ever catch you snooping around again you'll be sure to pay dearly for it. I will see to that myself." Leaving Philip slightly stunned, Leto turned around and walked back out of the library. A moment later Philip glanced around and then walked out the main library door. When both adults were gone Nina and Fabian stood up from their hiding place.

"So," Fabian started, "that was interesting."

"Very." Nina's eyes darted back to the door that Leto walked though.

With a sigh Fabian said, "You want to follow her don't you?"

"Just for a little bit. Since the day I met her, there was something off about that woman and I'm going to find out what that is. One way or another. Are you in?"

"Well there's no way I'm going to let you follow her alone. Let's go." With a mischievous twinkle in her eyes, Nina led the way through the library and out the back door.

The ended up in what looked like a service hallway. It completely lacked any sort of décor, unlike the rest of the house. The walls were made of plain, gray bricks that had cracks running along them. The floor looked like it hadn't been swept since the building was built, there had to have been an inch of dust on the floor. Hanging from various points on the ceiling were exposed light bulbs. Most of them were either dead or flickering so the entire hallway had a dim, eerie look to it. Every once in a while there was a strange banging sound that made both Nina and Fabian jump.

"It's probably just the furnace," Fabian reassured. It didn't make Nina feel any better though. At the end of the hallway was a large, metal door. Nina and Fabian both looked at each other. Leto had to have come this way; there was no other door out of the passage. With a shaky hand, Nina turned the rusty handle of the door. The door dragged across the cement floor, making a horrible scraping sound.

The inside of whatever room it was, was completely dark. "Do we go in?" Nina asked. Fabian nodded. Nina took a step through the dark doorway, and Fabian watched as she vanished from sight.

"NINA!"

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**Le gasp! Who saw any of that happening? I did, but then again, I also know how this story ends so my predictions don't really count for much. I wanted to take a moment to thank my lovely reviewers who make such predictions about this stoy. I get so happy when someone gets it right. So here's my new question for you- What do you think Philip and Leto's argument was about? And why would having Leto as an enemy be a bad thing? Let me know what you think! Reviews fuel mt writing fire and feed my plot bunny! So leave lots of them!**

**Oh and also, check out Blahgal's new story 'the land of the gods'! I'm the beta for it and I can honestly say that it is one of the most original stories on here that I have read. So if you want something that hasn't been done in HoA before, go check it out! **

**Peace out.**

**~Wolfie**


	22. House of Photographs

**Ummm...hi. I'm back from the dead as you can see. I haven't forgotten this story, as you can very well see. I lost inspiration. But it's back now. It just took a conversation with my wonderful friend Peace to help get me back on track with this. Once I started working, I couldn't stop. Skip had decided that writing Doctor Who stories was more fun, but now we're back to focusing on this. I hope you can all forgive me for being gone for...what...3 months? Is that how long it's been? I can't remember. Well anywho, you've all waited long enough...enjoy chapter 22! :D And if you don't hate me too much, leave a review. Heck even if you hate me for being gone so long leave a review anyways. **

**~Wolfie**

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Chapter 22 House of Photographs

Fabian's eyes peered through the darkness, trying to catch sight of his friend. "Nina?" he called out again.

"Watch your step when come in. There's a bit of a drop off," Nina's voice called through the darkness. Unsure of what Nina meant, Fabian put his foot through the doorway and felt for any sort of ledge or stair. He was surprised to find that there was nothing there. It was like the floor just ended, like he was standing on the edge of a cliff.

"Move out of the way Nina. I'm coming down," Fabian said to her. He listened for the sound of her shuffling feet before crouching low in the doorframe and jumping to the ground below.

As he landed Fabian felt his hands and knees come in contact with smooth, cool cement. Fumbling around in his pocket, he was able to find his cell phone and pressed a key. The darkness was dispelled, and Fabian glanced around for Nina.

She was standing a little ways away from him. Her hand was raised to her face to shield her eyes from the sudden light. With a wide grin, Fabian held his phone a little lower and went to stand next to Nina. "Ready to do a little sleuthing?" he asked.

"I was born ready." Side by side, the pair crept across the room with only the light of Fabian's phone to guide them. From what Nina could tell they were in a furnace room. Along a wall was a line of machines—boilers and furnaces.

"Where do you think she went?" Nina whispered. There was no sight of the elderly woman. As they stumbled along in the darkness, Nina started to get more and more discouraged. Leto had simply vanished. It was getting late and if they were gone much longer the others would start to worry.

Next to Nina, Fabian's mind was racing. There were down in the basement with no chance of getting interrupted. There were so many things that he wanted to talk to her about, and this may be his only chance. "Nina," Fabian said abruptly. He heard her stop and turn to look at him. "There's um something that I've been wanting to say but I haven't been able to say it and, well, I guess there's no better time than now."

"Hold that thought Fabian! I think I see a door!" Nina pushed past him, leaving Fabian standing there with his mouth half open. With a soft groan, he turned to follow Nina to the wall behind him. Sure enough, there was an old wooden door there. It was so ancient and rotten, it looked like it would fall apart any second. The handle was once gold in color, but covered with so much grime and rust that it was hard to tell.

With a nod from Nina, Fabian turned the handle and slowly pushed the door open. Despite its age, the door came open rather easily. It didn't even creak. Obviously someone had been using it recently. "Let's see what's behind door number one," Fabian joked. Nina rolled her eyes and peered into the room. To her surprise, there was a light on. It was a small table lamp with no shade.

"No one's here. Come on." Nina crept into the room. There wasn't much to see. The lamp was sitting on a wooden table. Covering the top of its surface were pieces of paper. Nina picked up one of the pages and felt her heart drop into her stomach. "Fabian," she whispered. "You need to see this."

He took the page from her and inhaled sharply. "It's Amber." The page Fabian held in his hand showed a computer printout of a photo of Amber. It had been taken while they had been at the beach the other day. Nina picked up another sheet. The second one held a picture of Mara. The one after that was of Alfie. Each piece of paper held a different picture of one of them. Dozens of sheets littered the table.

"Well someone has been busy," Fabian finally stated. "Do you think it was Leto?"

"Sure seems like it. She has been watching us ever since we got here."

"The others need to hear about this."

"You're right. We might as well head back. So what were you going to tell me just before?"

"Oh nothing, it doesn't really matter." With a shrug Nina headed for the door. As Fabian walked behind her, he mentally chastised himself for being a coward.

Somehow they were able to find the door that led to the dimly lit corridor. It turned out there was a step of sorts, it was a wooden plank nailed to the wall, but it helped them get back up to the corridor.

It was later than they thought it would be, so when they reached Nina's room they muttered a quick goodnight and Nina slipped into her room. Amber was sound asleep and snoring ever so softly. Nina grinned; she and Mara were the only two people in the world that knew she snored. She claimed it was her deepest secret. As quietly as she could, Nina slipped into her pajamas. Before she crawled into bed she found a piece of paper and scribbled a note for Amber, telling her to wake her up before she left in the morning. She set the note by Amber's phone and got into bed. Nina was asleep in minutes.

It seemed like she had been asleep for a few minutes before someone woke her up by shaking her arm. "Neens wake up," Amber whispered. Through bleary eyes Nina made out Amber's face peering down at her. She was dressed and ready for the day already.

"What time is it?" she muttered.

"Nine-thirty. I got your note. What's up? Why did you come back so late?" Slowly Nina's brain began waking up and she remembered what happened last night and what was going on today.

"You won't believe what Fabian and I found last night." Amber sat down on the bed and listened to Nina retell everything from the conversation between Leto and Philip, to the pictures they found in the basement.

Amber shook her head in disbelief. "It doesn't make any sense. Daddy trusts Philip and Leto. Could one of them really be bad?"

"If it was one of them, I'd put my money on Leto. She keeps watching us, and the stuff she said to Philip. It's all very suspicious."

"Yeah, I guess it is. But Leto has been with us for so long. I can't imagine that she would ever do anything to hurt my father."

"Amber, I really do hope I'm wrong. But we can't ignore it as a possibility."

A soft tap on the door distracted the pair. With a creek it opened to reveal Alfie's head. "Ambs, ready to go? We have to leave in a few minutes. With a quick nod Amber leapt off the bed.

Before she ran out the door, Amber turned to Nina and whispered, "I'll tell them what you told me on the ride to the island."

"OK. And make sure you're all careful."

"Nina. This is me we're talking about. I'm always careful." Nina rolled her eyes and watched as Amber shut the door behind her.

It took Nina twenty minutes to hop in the shower, and get ready for the day. By the time she made it down the stairs the others were already sitting around the table. "I was telling them what we found last night," Fabian explained as Nina sat down.

"Good. I told Amber right before she left."

"That's just too mad," Mick muttered. "Taking pictures of us. Spying on us. Who knows what else these people have been doing."

The table then grew silent as Mrs. Millington made her way onto the terrace. She took a seat at the head of the table and smiled softly. "Where is everyone else?"

"They, erm, went shopping. Amber told me that she had this big shopping trip planned and they left a little while ago," Nina lied smoothly. The woman's eyebrows lifted slightly, making her eyes seem even larger.

"And the four of you stayed here?"

"None of us really felt like shopping," Patricia stated simply. With a nod from Mrs. Millington, the conversation ended. The rest of the meal was spent making small talk about what else everyone wanted to do on the trip. It was all fake though. The only thing that any of the Sibuna members could think of was the others. They hoped they found the clue soon.

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"How long until we're there?" Mara asked into the helicopter headset. Their pilot, a middle aged man named Drew, turned to look at Mara.

"Not much longer now. Keep watch out the left side, soon the top of the volcano will come in. All four teens looked out at the endless sea, trying to see their destination. Next to Drew, Halim chucked softly. The four teens behind him has practically been jumping out of their seats for the past hour.

He knew how badly they wanted to get to the island. Somewhere, the last clue was hidden. When they found, they would finally be able to solve the mystery and save Nicholas. Then they could put an end to this nightmare once and for all.

"There it is!" Amber cried out. Towering over all the other islands that dotted the surface of the water, was the island of Nisyros. Near the base was a cluster of white buildings. The island didn't look unlike Rhodes.

"That's it? I thought there would be smoke billowing out the top or something," Alfie grumbled.

"The volcano is active, but there hasn't been any activity in over a hundred years," Halim explained. "We're going to land on the edge of that village. The temple isn't too far from there."

"What's it called?" Mara asked.

"Mandraki. It's the largest of the villages on the island. Just under seven hundred people live there."

The island grew in size as the helicopter flew closer. It took fifteen minutes to cross the village and land the helicopter. As soon as the blades stopped spinning, everyone climbed out and stood on the rocky ground.

"Lead the way," Amber said, as she gestured for Halim to start walking. In silence, the four teens followed the man down the rocky path. They were all nervous. When Amber shared what Nina and Fabian had found the night before, they all became very tense. It felt like someone was watching them that very minute.

The gravel path turned into a paved road as Halim led them into the village. No one paid any attention to the five strangers as they made their way down the road. A second gravel road branched off from the main road. It snaked up a steep hill, and at the top of it was an old building. It stuck out from the others. Instead of being white and pretty looking, this building was made of large grey bricks.

"That's where we're going," Halim said as he pointed to the building. The trek up the hill was difficult. The gravel that made the path was loose and gave little traction. It took a while, but they finally made it to the top.

"The last clue is somewhere in that temple," Amber sad in awe. "Then we can find my father."

"Then why are we still out here?" Alfie asked. Sharing knowing glances, the four members of Sibuna stepped through the threshold of the temple.

* * *

"Patricia, what are you doing?" Nina asked. The goth was seated in front of the computer, furiously typing away.

"Trying to find out more about these Children of Erebus people. If they're as old as Aspída says they are, there has to be some mention of them somewhere on the Internet."

"But Patricia, they're an ancient secret society. I don't think you'll be able to Google them." Turning her head away from the computer, Patricia glared up at Nina.

"I have to try. Sitting here waiting for the others to get back with the clue is killing me. Anything that I can find about them is better than nothing at all."

"I'm worried too." Patricia nodded and gave a grim smile. She then turned back to her research. Knowing better than to disturb her, Nina went off in search of Fabian and Mick. Ever since what happened between Mara and Jerome, Mick had been in a bad mood. Fabian was undoubtedly trying to help him calm down. As she left the library, Nina spotted someone out of the corner of her eye. Her breath stopped short as she recognized the person as Leto. The head of house was just standing there, watching her.

With a quick polite nod, Nina jogged out of the foyer and into the living room. Through the windows Nina saw Mick and Fabian sitting in some deck chairs.

It was then that Nina remembered how strange Fabian had acted the night before. There was something that he wanted to talk to her about something. It didn't take a genius to figure out that he wanted to talk about them. After the end of term prom back at school, the pair never got a chance to fully talk about where they were in their relationship.

After the dance they had all been exhausted and went straight to bed after the dance ended. Two days after that, the term was over and Nina had taken a plane back to America. Since then, everything had been so crazy with the mystery. There had simply been no chance for them to talk. The chance probably wouldn't come again until after the mystery was solved and Mr. Millington was safe.

Nina finally realized that she was standing in the middle of the living room, looking rather stupid, so she headed onto the patio to join Mick and Fabian.

"So any ideas on what we can do until the other gets back?" Fabian asked when he saw Nina.

"Nope. Patricia is burying herself into research on Erebus though. I guess the only thing we can do is wait. But you guys will never guess who I saw staring at me when I was inside."

"Hmm, oh let me take a crack at it. Would it happen to be madam creepy?" Mick asked sarcastically.

"How did you know?" Nina replied with a roll of her eyes. Swiftly, she turned her head to make sure that no one was behind her.

"Nina, don't start this again. Being paranoid isn't going to get us anywhere," Fabian cautioned.

"Hey, I was right to be paranoid about Victor."

"Who wouldn't be? He's a creepy bloke. Always has been. If it wasn't for Trudy being there, I would have left Anubis house years ago. Heck, I would have preferred to sleep on that bench by the library than stay in that house with just Victor." That got all three of them laughing. Everyone in the house probably would have done the same if Trudy wasn't around.

"What's so funny?" Patricia stood in the doorway, watching them laugh. In her hand, she clutched several pieces of paper. "I found something." That got everyone to stop laughing. Settling into one of the remaining chairs, Patricia passed around the papers. "Erebus is called one of the Primordial deities. According to mythology, he has been around since the creation of the universe. He represents everything that is darkness. He married the goddess of the night, Nyx. The name Erebus also refers to a part of the Underworld."

"So this god is like, legit bad," Mick stated.

"Almost as bad as they come I'd guess."

"Did you find anything about the Children of Erebus?" Nina asked.

"Nothing. I almost found something, but when I clicked on the link it told me the page was restricted. That's not the strange part though. I checked the Wi-Fi settings and there's nothing restricted. I should have been able to get into that site."

"Well someone doesn't want us to find anything out I guess," Fabian said.

"Guess not," Nina agreed sadly. "Oh. I have a voicemail. I didn't even feel my phone vibrate," Nina exclaimed as she pulled her phone out of her pocket. She held it up to her year to listen to the message.

There was nothing but static for a few moments. Nina was just about to hang up when a voice whispered into her ear. "Vges éxo. Vges éxo, enó échete akóma mia efkairía." With a gasp, Nina dropped the phone. It bounced off the concrete and landed by Fabian's feet.

* * *

Light streamed in from holes in the ceiling, giving a clear view of the inside of the temple. Not that there was much to see. A low stone table filled the front part of the room. Behind it though, was a worn statue of a man. Gripping a great hammer, he stood bent over an anvil of sorts. Time had worn the statue, masking many of the features the face once held.

Amber squinted her eyes, trying to take in every part of the statue. "Where did the clue say it would be?"

"The head of the tool," Mara replied.

"So, that means the hitting part of the hammer right?" Alfie asked.

"Yes Alfie, the hitting part." Mara shook her head. The hammer head was just out of her reach, but in the bright light she could see a hairline crack along the side of it.

"Find something Mara?" Jerome asked, coming up beside her.

"Maybe. There's a crack here, but I can't reach it."

"That's what you have me for." He smirked and swiftly lifted an arm, felt along the crack and pulled out a piece of paper. Everyone gathered around as Jerome opened the clue. "What's this?" On the slip were a series of symbols—Greek letters.

Halim glanced down at the paper and smiled. "So that's where it is. I should have guessed. Darien is going to kick himself."

"You know what that says?" Alfie asked hopefully.

"Better yet, I know exactly where that is."

Σκάλα του Ουρανού


	23. House of Messages

**Guess who's back from the dead! I'm on Christmas break now so I finally have time to update. For those of you not in college, it's a lot of work. For those of you who are, you know what I'm talking about. I'm so excited to be back writing and I'm sure a lot of you are excited to have me back. You know what I'm even more excited for? THE PRIMERE OF SEASON 2! Only a few more weeks to go! So to hold some people over until then, here's chapter 23! R&R, tell me what you like, don't like, whatever. I'd love to see who still reads this story. I don't actually own HoA as you all know but I might as well remind you just in case it slipped your minds. The plot however is mine, and I would love to keep it that way. There's a lot of drama going around with plot stealing/"inspiration" and I don't want there to be any trouble. If my story inspires you, let me know and I'll give my permission for it to be used. Simple as that. Now, on to the chapter! :D**

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Chapter 23 House of Messages

The air was tense and silent as the three teens looked from Nina to her phone lying on the ground. With a shaking hand Nina bent down to pick up the electronic from the ground.

The phone seemed to be undamaged, but Nina held it as if it was about to fall to pieces any second. Carefully she placed it on the table in front of her and looked at her friends.

Fabian was the first to speak up. "What was it Nina?"

"I don't know. There was some static, then a sort voice speaking in Greek." Fabian took the phone in his hands and went to replay the voicemail. A puzzled look came over his face as he listened to the mysterious voice.

"Who does it say it's from?" Patricia asked when Fabian hung up the phone.

"It says restricted number."

"Well that's helpful."

"Call it back," Mick suggested. Fabian passed Nina the phone. She redialed and turned on speakerphone. A second of heavy silence hung in the air before a series of beeps rang out, followed by an annoying automated voice.

"We're sorry. The number you are trying to reach is no longer in service. Please check the number and try your call again." Groaning in frustration, Nina hung up the phone and shoved it back in her pocket.

"So now what?" Patricia asked.

"We wait for the others to get back. And watch each other's backs," Fabian answered solemnly. "I have a feeling that if we don't things will end badly."

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"The Stairway to Heaven? Where's that?" Alfie asked as the group made their way back to the helicopter.

"At the very top of the Acropolis," Halim explained. "Now come on, the faster we get back the sooner we can get to the ruins."

"Should we let the others know now? They can meet us there," Mara asked. She held up her phone, but Halim quickly shook his head.

"It would be safer for all of you to travel together. The more split apart you are, the easier of targets you are. There have been too many attempts on your lives for me to take any unnecessary risk"

"Wish you would have thought of that before I was poisoned," Jerome muttered under his breath. Only Mara seemed to hear him, and she quickly slipped her hand into his.

Everyone piled into the helicopter, and the four Sibuna members exchanged glances. It wouldn't be long until the mystery was solved. Amber could barely contain her excitement at the thought of seeing her father again.

"All right everyone, here's the plan. We're going to go straight to the Millington house to pick up the others, and then head over to headquarters and discuses with the others how we're going to go in," Halim instructed.

"What happened to heading over the ruins as soon as possible? Alfie asked.

"Aspída is going over. The eight of you will wait for us at HQ."

"No. The eight of us are going with you. If it wasn't for us, you all wouldn't know where to find the treasure. Sibuna is as much into this as Aspída is. So we're going," Amber stated firmly. She crossed her arms over her chest. With a determined glare, she looked into Halim's eyes, daring him to challenge her. Sighing, Halim turned away from Amber. The blonde grinned and nodded to her friends.

No one thought it possible, but the return helicopter ride was even tenser than the first. Mara used the time to pull out her phone and text Nina, telling them what was going on. As she shut her phone, a strange sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach made Mara worry. She didn't know what it was, but something was going to happen. She hoped and prayed that the others would be all right when they got back to Amber's house.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

"That was Mara. They found the clue," Nina whispered excitedly. "They're on their way back here now."

"So where do we have to go?" Mick asked.

"She didn't say what the clue said. But they'll be back in a few hours. We can find out then."  
"Nina, can I talk to you for a second?" Patricia asked.

"Um, yeah, sure." Patricia took hold on Nina' wrist and led her away from Fabian and Mick. When they were out of ear shot, Patricia turned back to face Nina.

"I didn't want to bring this up in front of the others. The message, we need to know what it says. Do you think we should tell someone else about it? Like an Aspída member or even someone who works here in the house?"

"OK, who are you and what have you done with Patricia?" Nina asked. Nina knew that Patricia didn't trust people very easily, that much was obvious after she was betrayed by Mr. Winkler and Rufus Zeno.

"I know, I know. I'm the last one who would suggest something like this, but I can't explain it. I have this nagging feeling that we need to know that message."

"I do too, but who can we go to? And do you think the guys will agree with this?"

"I don't know that's why I wanted to talk to you about it first."

"I think we should wait. Once the others get back we can all decide as a group."

"Yeah all right."

"Everything all right?" Fabian asked when they came back to the patio.

"Yeah. Patricia and I think that when the others get back we should tell someone about the phone call. Maybe someone in Aspída will be able to translate it."

"We probably should," Fabian said, "But until then I was going to go back into the library and do some more research about Erebus, maybe knowing the legend about him will help us figure out who is in the group."

"I'll go with you. I have a few pages marked that could help us," Patricia offered.

"Great. Nina, you in too?" Fabian asked.

Nina was about to jump in, but then she saw the look on Mick's face. It was obvious that he felt like he didn't belong with the rest of them. Everything was still so new to him. "Actually, I was thinking of going back to the third floor. Mr. Millington might have some stuff up there about Aspída and the treasure. It could give us a better of what to expect when we go to find the treasure. Mick, do you want to come with me" Out of the corner of her eye, Nina saw Fabian's eyebrows rise in surprise.

"Uhhhh, sure. Yeah, why not? I thought it was off limits up there."

"It is," Patricia said with a sly grin. "Good luck."

"And be careful," Fabian added.

"Aren't I always?" Nina asked. Fabian grinned, as he and Patricia headed off into the house. "Right, let's go." Quickly, she and Mick made their way inside and up to the second floor.

As Mick watched the hallway, Nina took a bobby pin and unlocked the door. It swung open with a loud creak, causing both teens to jump. "What's up here?" Mick whispered as they crept up the stairs.

"A lot of stuff. We found the first clue up here."

"How? There have to be a dozen rooms up here," Mick muttered as he looked up and down the hall at the top of the stairs.

"Luck mostly. We tend to be really lucky for some reason. Come on, we found the first clue in this room. Nina led the way back into the room with all the boxes. Everything was just as they had left it when they were up here several days ago. It felt like ages ago that they had snuck up here and found the first clue.

Using her cell phone to guide her, Nina made her way across the room and knelt on the floor. The box the ring had been in still sat on its side. Lying in the bottom of the box were some dust covered folders and notebooks. She picked them out of the box and handed them to Mick. "Might as well start here. The first clue was in this box, so we have a good chance of finding more here." Mick sat on the floor next to her, and they began skimming through the folders. Reading by cell phone was hard, but it got the job done.

"Nina, can I ask you something?" Mick whispered.

"Yeah?"

"Why did you ask me to come up here with you? This is the kind of thing I thought you and Fabian would do."

"You're part of Sibuna now. Didn't seem right to exclude you from the search."

"Thanks."

"Anytime Mick." They both went back to their searching, getting more frustrated as time passed.

Just as Nina was about to give up, Mick gasped in surprise. "I think I might have found something. It looks like a journal of some sort. It mentions Aspída and Erebus." Nina smiled as she put down the notebook she was looking through. She added the light of her phone to Mick's and the pair started to read the journal.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

"The faster we can get to the ruins the better," Halim instructed. "So get your friends and get back out here. I'll have a car waiting for you." With those simple instructions Amber, Mara, Alfie and Jerome climbed out of the helicopter and onto the helipad. A car was waiting to take them back to the house, and once they were seated it sped off down the street.

"Did you text the others?" Alfie asked.

"I did when we were leaving. I'll text them now saying that we've landed," Mara said as she pulled out her phone. It didn't take long to reach the house, and when they did the four teens flew out of the car and ran up the stairs.

Patricia and Fabian were waiting in the foyer when the others came in. "Where are Nina and Mick?" Amber asked.

"Last we saw them they were heading up to the third floor to look for more clues," Fabian explained. "They haven't come down yet and I'm getting worried. I'll go see if they're still up there."

"And I need to run to my room to get my bag. We'll be right back," Mara said. They ran up the stairs, leaving the others standing in the foyer.

"Did you guys get any new info?" Alfie asked.

"You could say that," Patricia said slowly.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

"Hey go back a page Mick. I thought I saw something." He turned to the previous page in the journal, and waited for Nina to read it. "It says something about a betrayal. Listen to this. I never thought I would see the day when one of our own turns their back on us. And after everything I did for him. Pandaros is dead to me."

"Who's Pandaros?"

"I don't know. The others will want to know about this though. We should take the notebook with us. Maybe Aspída will be able to tell us more." Both teens stood up and made their way out of the room. When they got to the bottom of the stairs, Nina went to open the door only to find it locked.

"Nina, why won't the door open?" Mick asked worriedly.

"It's not supposed to lock on its own. Someone locked it. Which means they knew we were up here. And now we're stuck." Even in the dim light of the cell phones, Mick could see the worry in Nina's eyes. She quickly pulled out her phone and dialed the ever familiar number, hoping that he would pick up.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Fabian ran down the hall, trying to remember exactly where the door to the third floor was. It had been dark, and the adrenaline had been pumping so he hadn't really paid enough attention. Now he was kicking himself for it. As he turned the corner, he almost collided with someone.

"Careful there Fabian. Where are you off to in such a rush?" Philip asked.

"Oh, just looking for Nina and Mick. We're all going into town for a little while," he lied swiftly.

"Oh well, I just came from this way and I didn't see them. Maybe they're out back or something."

"Yeah, maybe. Thanks Philip." With a polite nod, the young man continued walking down the hallway. He was around the next corner when Fabian felt his phone buzz in his pocket. Registering Nina's name on the caller ID he flipped his phone open and whispered, "Where are you?"

"Someone knows that Mick and I are up on the third floor. The door is locked and there's no key hole on out end. We're stuck in here," Nina replied.

"I'll be right there. Just hang tight." Fabian hung up the phone and continued to make his way down the hall. He was starting to remember the way to the door. When he found it, Fabian lightly tapped on it. "Nina? Mick? Can you guys hear me?"

"Took you long enough mate," Mick whispered back.

"Fabian, I'm going to push a bobby pin under the door so you can unlock it," Nina said. A second later, Fabian saw the thin piece of metal on the floor. It took him a little while, but soon he was able to unlock the door with a click. A second later Nina and Mick came stumbling out.

"Did you see anyone near the door Fabian?" Nina asked as she shut the door and relocked it.

"I saw Philip heading down the hall a little while ago. He was heading towards the staircase."

"Do you think he locked the door?" Mick asked.

"Hard to say. But Fabian, you are never going to believe what we found up there," Nina said.

"It'll have to wait, the others are back. We need to get going. They're waiting for us."

"Then what are we waiting for?" As they ran, Nina thought about what Fabian said about seeing Philip. Even though Amber completely trusted him, there was something off about the man. Plus there was the conversation she and Fabian overheard him having with Leto. It was all really suspicious.

The three teens reached the foyer, and went to stand with the others. "There you all are. We were about to come looking for you," Amber said.

"Where's Mara?" Jerome asked.

"She isn't back yet? We didn't see her upstairs," Fabian admitted.

"Was she supposed to be?" Nina asked.

"Yeah, she went up with Fabian. She had to get something out of her room," Patricia explained. "She should be back by now though."

"Patricia, why don't you and I go up to your room and see if she's still in there?" Nina asked. "Mick, can you fill the others in on what we found up on the third floor?" With a nod Mick opened the notebook he had been holding. Patricia and Nina turned and made their way back up the stairs.

"It's some sort of journal. It mentions Aspída and the treasure and the Children of Erebus. And Nina found something in it about a betrayer. Some guy named Pandaros."

"Halim is waiting outside. He could tell us something," Alfie suggested. The car was sitting there waiting, just as Halim said it would. When he saw the teens coming, Halim stepped out and looked at them.

"Where are the others?" he asked.

"On their way. But for now, what can you tell us about a guy named Pandaros?" Fabian asked. The man's skin instantly paled, and he looked very nervous about something.

"Pandaros Savalas. The only man to ever leave Aspída. It was years ago, but he thought that his personal goals were more important than Aspida's. He betrayed us, and none of us have heard from him since." He reached into his pocket and pulled out an old photograph. "That's us years ago. Pandaros is the one on the end." He handed the picture to Fabian. The others all crowded around to get a better look.

"Anyone else think he looks like someone we all know?" Jerome asked nervously.

"But that's not possible. This picture is way too old for it to be him," Mick said in awe.

"You'd be surprised Mick. We've seen things like this end up being very possible," Jerome whispered.

"How though? This guy looks exactly like—"

"Mara's gone!" Nina yelled as she and Patricia came running out of the house.

"What do you mean gone?" Jerome asked, stepping forward.

"Gone like, our room is totally town apart and we can't find her anywhere," Patricia snapped. "We looked everywhere. I-I think someone took her."

"And I think we might know who," Fabian said. He passed the picture over to Nina. "Take a look at the guy on the end."

"This can't be happening," Patricia choked out.

"It is. They might still be in the house though. Amber, where are the cars parked?" Nina asked. Time was precious, and they had to find Mara before it was too late.

"Down this way!" Amber took off running, followed closely behind by everyone else. She led the way to the side of the house where a large garage door was concealed. Amber quickly typed in a code on a keypad and the door slid open. Everyone's breaths caught in their throats when the door pulled open enough to show that the midnight blue Town Car was not there.


	24. House of Betrayal

**Another chapter up and running! Sorry this took so long everybody. I hope you all had a nice holiday season (whatever holiday you may celebrate) and also a happy new year. This is my late Christmas/new years present to all of you. I thought I was going to get this stoy over with in like 6 more chapters, but now I'm not so sure. If I make some really long chapters perhaps. I'll just have to see how it all unfolds. I just want to take the time and thank everybody that has followed this story since the beginning. I'm almost to my one yewar mark of posting, and that's such a crazy feeling. I'd like t get it done by then because with my school schedule I don't know how much writing time I'm actually going to have. I have until the 17th to get as much work done as I can. That's when I start school again. Wish me luck. But for now, enjoy the chapter! And who else is as excited as me for the return of our wonderful House of Anubis season 2? The very first clip of the premiere is up on the Nick website, in case you wanted to check it out. A huge thanks to Peace for posting the youtube version, and also a big thanks to Anonymous for the Nick website link! You both rock! :D Peace out.**

**~Wolfie **

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Chapter 24 House of Betrayal

"This doesn't make any sense," Amber cried. "Philip couldn't have taken Mara." Her entire body was shaking, and tears streamed from her eyes. Halim finally caught up with the rest of Sibuna, and looked at them with confusion.

"What is going on here?" he asked. "Do you know who took your friend?"

"Philip. He works for Mr. Millington," Fabian explained.

"But he's been so nice to all of us. He doesn't seem like the evil type," Mick argued.

"That's what makes him good at his job." The sound of footsteps made everyone turn around. Looking abnormally disheveled, Leto walked briskly towards them. "He did take Mara, I tried to stop him, but I wasn't fast enough." Halim looked back and forth between Leto and the Sibuna members. He then leaned in her ear and whispered something to her. It was hard to tell what they were saying, but it sounded like Greek.

When they stopped talking, Leto beckoned for everyone to follow her. She led them down the path to the back of the house. Along the back wall was a large section of ivy that grew up the wall. Pushing part of it aside, Leto revealed a door. It was painted white, making it almost unnoticeable. "I will explain everything in here. It's not safe to talk outside," Leto said as she motioned for everyone to go through the door.

Once their eyes adjusted to the darkness, Nina and Fabian let out small gasps of surprise. They were in the cellar, not far from where they found the pictures of them. Following Leto, they walked along the back wall of the cellar until they reached a door. Leto took a key out of her pocket and stuck it in the lock.

There wasn't much inside the room. A table and a few wooden chairs. Mounted on the wall was a wooden board with a few books stacked along it. A single light bulb hung from the ceiling. When everyone was inside, Leto shut the door and relocked it.

"So are you going to tell us what's going on?" Jerome demanded. Leto ignored him, and went to the bookshelf. She pulled a book from it and set it on the table in front of them.

"Philip isn't who he says he. If Nicholas knew who he really was, he never would have hired him to work here. I've had my suspicions about him for a while, and it wasn't until a few days ago that I was certain," Leto explained as she thumbed through the pages of the book.

"What are you suggesting Leto?" Halim asked. "That this boy is part of Paidiá tou Érevos?"

"I'm afraid so. I was going to tell Nicholas about it, but he was taken before I had the chance to. Ever since the children arrived, I could tell that he was hiding something."

"We children would like to know what you are talking about. Why did Philip take Mara?" Patricia remarked snidely.

"His name is not Philip," Leto replied. "It's Phokas Savalas. His father was Pandaros Savalas."

"Than man who betrayed Aspída?" Alfie asked in surprise. Leto nodded and stopped looking through pages.

"This is them. Phokas and his father. He was just a boy when Pandaros betrayed us." She pointed to a page in the book where a photograph was taped. In it was the man that Halim showed them, and a small boy. He had to be around eight years old at the time. Both were smiling warmly at the camera. Behind them was the endless span of the sea. Neither of the people looked like they could be traitors or kidnapers.

"Is anyone getting a sense of déjà vu?" Patricia asked as she studied the photo.

"How do you know all of this?" Nina asked suddenly. "Are-are you a member of Aspída Leto?" The older glanced over at Halim, then back to Nina. With a surprisingly warm smile, the older woman nodded. She tugged on a chain around her neck, and hanging on the end of it was an Aspída ring.

Halim took everyone's shocked silence to explain. "We knew that Nicholas would be targeted because of the clue, so we put Leto in the house to watch out for anything suspicious."

"Which is why you were always sneaking around and watching us right?" Fabian asked. The woman nodded as took her ring off of the chain and placed it on her finger. "So then, were you the one who took the pictures of us?"

"What pictures?" Leto asked with alarm in her voice. "I never took any pictures of you all." Fabian looked over to Nina and nodded.

"The other night, Fabian and I were in the library," Nina started. "You and Phil-err-Phokas came in and were arguing about something. He told you that he saw you watching us, and that you were planning something. We sort of followed you down here. Then we found a room that was filled with pictures of the eight of us."

Leto stiffened slightly, remembering the conversation. "Show me." She unlocked the door and motioned for Fabian and Nina to take the lead. Even in the darkness, it wasn't too hard to find the door that lead to the hidden room. Everything was the same as it had been the other night. The pictures were still scattered across the table, and it looked like no one had been there since Fabian and Nina had.

"I didn't know this was down here," Leto mused. She picked up one of the pictures of Mick and studied it. "And I haven't seen Phokas taking any pictures of you all."

"That's because it was me," a soft voice said from the doorway.

"Mum?" Amber asked in surprise. "What are you doing down here? And what do you mean that you took them?" Mrs. Millington entered the room, and took the photo from Leto's hands. She set it back down on the table. With that she turned back to the Sibuna members and sighed.

As she tucked a lose strand of hair behind her ear, she looked at each of the teens in front of her. "I knew you all were up to something. Ever since Nicholas went missing you've all been sneaking around. Darien assured me that none of you had anything to do with Nicholas' disappearance, but I just had to be sure. And after you went up to the third floor that night I had to make sure that something more wasn't going on."

"Mum, you knew we went up there?" Amber asked in surprise. "And you thought that one of my friends had something to do with Daddy going missing?"

"At first I thought it was someone in Aspída, but Adriane told me that none of them had been up there. And no love, I didn't think that, but I thought that perhaps you would all be targeted as well. That something about you all being here had to do with why your father was missing."

"They have been targeted Claire," Halim said solemnly. "Pandaros is still causing trouble for all of us."

"He's back?" Mrs. Millington asked in shock.

"Not that we know of, but his son found a way into our midst. I'm sure you remember Phokas."

"Of course I do. That quiet little boy. What does he have to do with any of this?"

"Mum, Phokas is Philip. Our Philip. And he kidnapped Mara," Amber cried out. "And we don't know where he took her."

Mrs. Millington looked at her frantic daughter, her eyes growing in surprise and fear. "Then what are we doing standing around here?" she asked.

With Leto and Mrs. Millington leading the way, the group ran out of the cellar and back up the front drive. Halim's car was still waiting for them. With a few hushed words to the driver, Halim got into the front while everyone else piled into the back. The driver, a man in his forties, sped down the road with the vigor of a twenty year old.

It did not take long to reach the Aspída headquarters. When they did, Darien, Lazar, Sofia, and Orrin were standing outside waiting for them. "We came as soon as you called," Darien said as Halim got out of the front seat. "Adriane and Alix are going to meet us at the ruins."

"What about Mara? What's your plan to get her back?" Jerome asked. He shut the car door and glared at the man before him.

"That's why they're meeting us at the ruins. Alix and Adriane are going to try and get in touch with Paidiá tou Érevos. They will try to set up a deal with them so we can get Mara back," Sofia answered calmly.

"That's not good enough. Shouldn't we call the police or something?" Mick asked.

"We have reason to think that they've infiltrated the police," Lazar admitted.

"Well that's just great," Patricia muttered under her breath. "Is there anyone in the police that isn't part of some secret society?" The Aspída members gave each other confused looks, but brushed them off.

"We know of several confirmed members. One of them works in the restaurant where you were poisoned," Lazar admitted to Jerome. "We also have reason to believe that a worker at the bank is one of them as well."

"We don't care about that right now," Fabian yelled. "We need to find Mara before Phokas hurts her. You said that these people aren't above hurting others to get what they want. They've tried to kill us several times, so what's to stop them now that they have Mara?" Before anyone had the chance to say anything else, Jerome's phone began to ring. He pulled it from his pocket and his face instantly whitened.

For a few short moments he stared at the device before Alfie finally took it from his hand and looked at who it was. Jerome finally found his voice and choked out, "It's Mara." He snatched it back from Alfie and answered it. "Mara? Mara, where are you? Are you all right?"

"Mara is a bit…tied up at the moment," a voice said from the other line. "She'd love to chat, but I think I'm a bit more interesting to talk to. Don't you?"

"Where is she?" Jerome growled into the phone. Catching Jerome's eye, Nina mouthed for him to put it on speakerphone.

"You don't have to worry. She's safe for now. And I'll even give her back to you, no strings attached. If you do one little thing for me."

"Phokas, let the girl go. She has nothing to do with any of this," Darien said calmly. Everyone could hear Phokas cackle.

"And give up my one bargaining chip? I'm not an idiot. Bring me the Palladium and I will give you your friend back. Get it to me by midnight and I'll let her go harm free."

With burning eyes, Jerome held the phone close to his face. "Listen you creep, you hurt one hair on your head and I swear I'll—"

"You'll what Mr. Clarke? You shouldn't make empty threats. That's how people get hurt. Get me the Palladium by midnight and you won't have to worry about your friend being hurt. I think your society monkeys know where to meet me."

"Where's my dad?" Amber called out suddenly. "Let him go."

"Oh I don't have kind, old Mr. Millington. He's keeping my friends company right now. You'll have to take the matter up with them. Good luck. And remember—midnight." There was a low beep, and the silence. Precious seconds ticked by, but no one made a sound. Finally, Jerome cleared his throat and looked at the Aspída members standing in front of him.

"What do we need to do to get Mara back?" he asked with determination in his voice.

"This changes everything. Phokas knows that he can't get it on his own. Paidiá tou Érevos may know where to find the Palladium, but that doesn't mean it will be easy to. The original Aspída members made sure of that," Orrin explained calmly.

"What is this Palladium thing anyways? What does it do?" Mick asked.

"How much do you know about the Trojan War? Sofia asked.

"That's the one where the soldiers hid in the big horse right?"

"Yes. I won't go into the history of it all because, frankly, we don't have the time. The Palladium was a wooden statue of sorts, and according to the legend, as long as it remained in the walls of the city Troy, it would never fall."

Darien then added in, "Whoever holds the Palladium will never lose. They will be invincible."

"How can all of this be true? It's all myths and legends and stuff."

"Mick, trust us. Stuff like this is very real," Patricia said.

"Great. While we're all standing here getting a history lesson, Mara is being held hostage by a lunatic. And so far, no one has suggested anything helpful to try and get her back!" Jerome yelled.

"We can't give the Palladium to Phokas. Who knows what he could do with that kind of power?" Orrin stated.

Everyone in Sibuna looked at Orrin in shock. "So, you're saying, just let him kill her? Abandon Mara and keep the treasure safe?" Nina asked fearfully.

"No way. We won't let that happen. Mara is out friend, and we're not abandoning her. Not now, not ever," Fabian added.

"You kids don't understand the seriousness of the situation. We have been keeping the Palladium safe for centuries. And we would be fools to consider giving it up for the life of a teenage girl," Orrin explained.

"She's our friend!" Amber cried. "Mum, do something. We can't just leave Mara to these people."

With pain flashing in her eyes, Amber watched her own mother stepped away from her and shook her head. "Amber, darling, I know how much Mara means to you. She's a wonderful person, but the fate of the world could be at stake. I'm sorry Amber. There is nothing that we can do to help you. We can't give the Palladium up."

"There have been so many deaths over the Palladium. Thousands of innocent people, many like your friend, have suffered and died over it. But think for a minute how much suffering there will be if anyone in Paidiá tou Érevos gets their hands on it," Lazar told them.

"So Mara is dispensable? A person who has nothing to do with this war you're all having. A person who has never hurt anyone in her life? Her life means nothing in the greater scheme of things?" Jerome roared. Alfie, who was standing next to Jerome, sidestepped to put some distance between him and his raving friend. "I can't believe I'm hearing this."

"Unless Adriane and Alix can convince Phokas to release your friend, there is nothing that we can do. We're sorry. We really are," Sofia said.

"If there was another way, any way at all, we would do something," Halim added. Then, as if nothing had really happened, the Aspída members turned and walked back into the building. At the end of the group, Amber's mom followed. But, not before taking one last look at her heartbroken daughter.

As Amber choked back tears, she watched her mom walk with the people who had claimed to help them. The very people they trusted to help them. Now, when they needed help the most, they turned their backs on them.

"Well, who's ready for a hike up the ruins?" Fabian asked.

"You mean, go after this Palladium thing ourselves? Free Mara?" Mick asked.

"Why wouldn't we? If Aspída isn't going to help us, then we'll have to do it ourselves," Nina added.

"And if Mara was here instead of one of us, she would stop at nothing to help us. So there's no way we can quit now. She's counting on us," Patricia said.

"Then let's get going," Mick yelled. "But, um, how are we going to get up to the ruins?"

With a roll of her eyes, Patricia grabbed Mick's elbow and started to pull him down the street. The others followed closely behind. At the back of the group, Nina looked around nervously. What if they were too late? If anything happened to Mara, none of them would be able to forgive themselves.

This wasn't Mara's fight. Nina was the one who got them all mixed up in this, and if any of her friends got hurt, it would be her fault. She almost got her friends killed back at school. What if now she wasn't so lucky?

"Penny for your thoughts?" Fabian asked, pulling Nina out of her daydreaming. He gave her a small, hopeful smile that could only make Nina smile back. Nina bit her lip, unsure of how to respond. "I'm worried about her too."

"We never should have told her about Sibuna. Maybe then she would be safe."

"There's no way of knowing that Nina. He could have kidnapped her either way. We'll find this Palladium, and get Mara back. You'll see."

"Then why do I have such a bad feeling about this whole thing?" Quickly, Fabian slipped his hand into Nina's. He stopped walking and looked Nina in the eyes.

"Whatever happens, we'll get through it. Together."

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**To all my wonderful readers who keep telling me how tired they are of Fabina almost-moments. Did that help a litle bit? It's getting closer, I promise. I wouldn't leave you all hanging forever. It'll come, and it'll come big.**


	25. House of Corridors

**Here comes another chapter! Things are starting to get pretty intense. There's still a ways to go before the end of the story, but sadly we are closer to the end than to the beginning. I decided to do this the other day. I'm going to have a little competition to teach a little history lesson! At the end of the chapter I will explain what it is that you will be doing. For now, enjoy the chapter :) Peace out.**

**~Wolfie**

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Chapter 25 House of Corridors

Most of the visitors were gone from the ruins by the time Sibuna arrived. There were only one or two cars in the parking lot, which probably belonged to workers of some kind. Maybe some of the archeologists assigned to the acropolis restoration.

Everyone walked in silence. They moved as ghosts across the main courtyard. Nina was amazed how a place so vibrant during the day, could be so eerie at night. With the sun barely showing over the horizon, shadows leapt from the corners as they chased away the remaining traces of light. For the first time since they arrived in Greece, clouds dotted the sky, and blocked out some of the stars. The moon was still out, glowing brighter and brighter as the sun dipped over the edge of the sea.

"Do you think it's going to rain?" Amber asked softly. She gazed up at the growing clouds and shuddered.

"It might," was Fabian's simple answer. "So what did the clue say?"

"It was just a name. It said the Stairway to Heaven," Alfie explained. "Halim said that it was at the very top of the acropolis."

"We have to get all the way up there?" Patricia asked, pointing to the ruin towering above their heads.

"Yep," Nina responded. "Let's get going. We have until midnight."

"It's almost eight thirty. We don't have much time," Fabian said quickly. "We need to hurry." With that, they all broke out into a run across the span of the courtyard. Nina and Fabian led the way, trying to remember how to get to the stairway. When the archway that marked the start of the stairs came into view finally came into view.

"You mean we have to climb all these stairs?" Amber cried out. She leaned against one of the walls, breathily heavily. "I can't run anymore."

"We don't have a choice Amber. Now tell your brain to make your feet move," Patricia snapped. The blonde scowled at being rushed, but pushed herself up from the wall.

"You're right. We have to hurry. For Mara." The seven teens nodded to each other and began the ascension to the top of the acropolis. When they got to the top everything looked as it had the first time.

"Any idea as to where we need to go now?" Jerome asked.

"This is the Stairway to Heaven," Fabian said as he pointed to the arch.

"Everyone, start looking for something that could be an entrance," Nina instructed. The group fanned out, examining the walls by the light of their cell phones. Nina went to the far side of the acropolis, but nothing seemed to be there. The carvings on the wall were so old and faded that it would be impossible to read, even if she knew how to read Greek.

"Hey guys," Fabian called out. "I think I found something." Tucked away in a corner, Fabian stood with his phone shining on some carvings in the wall.

"They look like a bunch of triangles to me," Mick commented. On four different bricks were four small carvings of triangles. One was pointing up, another pointing down. There were two others exactly the same, but each had a line drawn through it by the point.

"Nina, remember when I showed you that book about the four classical elements?" Fabian asked. "And my theory about the clues being tied into them? Well, these symbols represent the different elements."

"What the heck are you talking about?" Jerome asked. "Classical elements?"

"The ancient Greeks believed that everything was made from four elements—earth, air, fire and water. The clues that we found are each tied to one of those elements. The first clue was water…"

"The second one was earth," Nina continued.

"And the clue that led us off the island. That was fire wasn't it?" Alfie asked.

"Then what about air? What does taking us here have to do with air?" Patricia asked.

"I read something about air in Greek mythology. They had two different kinds of air, the lower air that mortals would breathe, and an upper air. It was the air the gods would breathe. Up in heaven." Fabian motioned to the staircase that loomed near them.

"Stairway to Heaven," Jerome said with understanding. "So does this mean we're going to get another clue now? Or find this place?"

"I think this is it. Each of these symbols represents the elements. Water was the first element we found, so..." Fabian carefully reached out and put his hand against the triangle with its point facing down. There was a loud grinding noise as the brick slide back, and then a loud bang. Everyone held their breath for several moments, afraid that someone could have heard them.

"Earth was the next one," Patricia whispered. Fabian looked at each of the remaining bricks, trying to remember which one was earth. His eyes rested on the point down triangle with the line through it. He pressed that one in, and another loud bang echoed through the ruins.

"Hurry up mate, someone's bound to come by any minute," Mick urged. Frantically, Fabian found the third symbol, the right side up triangle. The symbol for fire. The final brick, the symbol of air, was all that remained. When he slid the brick back with the others, there was a thundering grinding sound.

With their hands over their ears, the Sibuna members looked around for where the sound was coming from. Everyone's eyes locked on one point. The staircase. Part of the great stone stairway had actually moved aside to reveal a set of stairs leading downwards. Right underneath the ruins.

"I think we found the door," Alfie muttered.

"No wonder those Erebus people never found this place. Every square inch of these walls are covered in symbols. Looking for those four stones would like a needle in a haystack," Patricia mused as they made their way towards the staircase.

"Plus they would have to press them in the right order," Nina added. The seven of them all stood at the top of the staircase, peering down into the darkness that awaited them.

"So who wants to go down the ancient stone stairs into the dark creepy tunnel first?" Alfie asked.

Seemingly unfazed by Alfie's comment, Patricia took the first step down the stairs. Slowly everyone followed. No one was sure how old these stairs were, so they were all careful with each step they took. The entire thing could collapse at any second.

The darkness grew with each step they took, and soon the light was gone. Even with the light of seven cell phones, the light was sparse. At the bottom, the floor felt smooth underneath their feet. They all turned their phones down to the ground to reveal that it was made of sleek, polished marble.

"Someone really took their time building this place," Amber commented as they tried to get their bearings. There was no light anywhere, but they were able to make out large white columns with their cell phone light. The staircase left them at the head of a long corridor. There was only one way to go, and that was forward.

"I just hope no one finds us down here," Nina commented. "We saw those cars, there has to be someone else here. And Adriane and Alix were supposed to come too weren't they?"

"Well hopefully those backstabbing Aspída clowns told them not to bother," Patricia muttered.

"Can we get going now? We aren't going to find the treasure standing around here," Jerome asked. Cautiously they began the trek down the corridor. The hall was narrow, there was barely enough room to walk two by two. Several times someone would cry out from getting stepped on.

After what felt like an endless amount of time, the hall began to widen out. "Is that…light? Up ahead?" Patricia asked. At the end of the corridor was a sort of room. Somehow a pale light filled the entire place.

"This is amazing," Nina whispered breathlessly.

"How is it possible?" Fabian added.

They stood in a huge circular room. The floor was made of polished, white marble. Littered around were small stones that had fallen from the ceiling over the years. Fourteen columns lined the outer wall. Somewhere up in the ceiling, was a large hole. Moonlight streamed through, right down to the center of the room. On a marble pedestal sat a glass prism. The moonlight shone down onto it, and the light was casted off through the room.

"Look at this place," Patricia said in awe. She stared at the glass prism before her. Slightly smaller than a soccer ball, it was clear, with perfectly smooth cuts along it. A stone cradle held it in place.

"That is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen," Amber whispered as she walked up to the pedestal. "Is this what's making it light in here?"

"It's a prism. Someone cut it so that when the moonlight shines on it, light is cast through the room," Fabian explained.

"Thanks Mr. Sweet, for the science lesson," Jerome snapped. He walked around the pedestal and pointed to a series of doors across from them. "I think these are a bit more important."

The four doorways loomed, each with a corridor that led away from the light. Above each was one of the four symbols of the classical elements. Though no one wanted to admit it, they all knew the inevitable. They would have to split up.

"I don't like this. I don't like this at all," Amber cried. "We shouldn't split up! Who knows what's down there."

"We don't have a choice Amber," Nina said worriedly. She didn't want to split up either, but they didn't have time to search each tunnel in one group. Something else then dawned on them all. There were seven of them, and four tunnels. Someone would have to go alone.

"Anyone willing to volunteer?" Nina asked hopefully.

"I have an idea," Patricia offered. She began walking around the room, picking stones off of the ground. Every once in a while she would place one of the stones in her pocket. After a minute she ran back over to the others and presented the stones. "There are seven stones here. We'll each draw one and whoever gets the smallest will have to go it alone."

"I don't like it, but we don't have another choice," Nina agreed.

"Draw them out of this," Alfie offered as he pulled off his blue cap. He held it out to Patricia, and she dropped the stones into it. Each of them closed their eyes and drew a stone out of the hat. When they each had one in their fist, they looked at each other.

"On three?" Nina asked.

"One…two…three…" All seven of them opened their fists and looked down at the stones. They studied their own stones, then look at the other ones. With fear growing across his face, Alfie stared at his own stone, which was much smaller than the others.

"It'll be OK Alfie. We know you can do it," Amber said encouragingly. In the dim light, it was still obvious that Alfie's skin was growing pale from fear.

"You'll all right, mate," Jerome said, giving Alfie a slap on the back. "You braved the cellar at school on your own."

"Yeah, the cellar. Where I could run away and go to my own bed. This is a dark, creepy, ancient tunnel that'll lead me to who knows where."

"Look, let's all meet back up here at eleven thirty. If we haven't found anything by then, we'll have to think of a different way to get Mara back."

"Do you think we could, Nina?" Amber asked.

"We'll have to."

"All right. Then let's get looking. The treasure won't find us. Patricia, can I go with you? You aren't afraid of this place."

"Yeah, sure." With a small squeak Amber jumped forward and latched herself onto Patricia's arm. Nina and Fabian looked at each other, and with unspoken agreement knew they would take one of the tunnels together. Jerome looked at the two pairs in front of him. Then he looked at Mick.

"Not on your life."

"Jerome, we don't have time for this," Patricia snapped. "Mara doesn't have time for this. Grow up and go with Mick down that darn tunnel!"

"Yes ma'am," he snapped sarcastically.

"So we're all in agreement? Meet back here at eleven thirty?" Nina asked. Everyone around her nodded. "Sibuna."

"Sibuna." They split off into their four groups, each walking down one of the four corridors. Patricia and Amber headed down the fire corridor. Mick and Jerome took the air path. Fabian and Nina chose water. Lastly, Alfie walked slowly down the earth corridor. Each one of them was afraid of what was ahead of them, but even more afraid of what would happen if they failed.

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**The challenge: **

**Somewhere in this chapter there is a number. That number represents something significant in greek mythology. Your task is to figure out what that number is, and what it means. The people who get it correctly will get a choice of a prize. I will either give them a sneak peak of the next chapter, or answer one question about the story. In a review tell me that you have an answer, then send your guess in a PM to me so no one will cheat ;) Good luck and happy researching! **

**~Wolfie **


	26. House of Air

**Sorry it took me a little longer to get this chapter up! I think I finally know how I'm going to be wrapping up this story. I can guarantee at least 4 more chapters. Maybe 5. I'm not quite sure yet. Now, I know I made a challenge in my last chapter. I only had one person give me an answer that was remotely close. Congrats Somebody615, you are the official winner :) For anyone else who is curious, the number was 14. It represents the number of the 14 Protogenoi. They were the dieties that came before the titans and olympians. They're know in legend for creating the universe, such as time, sleep, etc. Erebus is one of them, he created darkness. It's all very interesting to me, so if you have any questions about where to get more info on them feel free to PM me. Enjoy this next chapter and remember to give a nice review :) **

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Chapter 26 House of Air

"Could you walk any slower Campbell? Or is finding Mara not that important to you?" Jerome sneered as they crept down the passage. Mick led the way, using his hand against the wall as a guide. His cell phone lit no more than a foot ahead of him.

"Shut up Clarke. I'm going as fast as I can. You want to lead?"

"If it means we can move faster than a frostbitten sloth, yes." Forcefully, Jerome pushed himself past Mick and led the way down the tunnel. There was no light ahead of them, or behind them. The pair was completely submerged in darkness. As they walked along, Jerome could tell that the tunnel was getting narrower. He could feel the smooth stone brush against his arm every once in a while.

Behind him, Jerome could hear Mick breathing heavily. "This probably isn't the best time to mention that I sometimes get claustrophobic is it?"

"That's not really my problem is it?"

"Listen Clarke, I don't want to be stuck down in this hole with you any more than you do with me. But Mara is counting on us. So why don't we just pretend we like each other and focus on finding her?" This made Jerome stop walking. He turned around, and in the dim light of their phones Mick could see the anger in Jerome's eyes.

"I am focused on finding her. I won't stop until she is safe with us, and far away from those lunatics. And it's not that I don't want to be stuck down in this hole with you, I just don't want to be around you in general."

"Real mature Jerome. What does Mara see in you anyways?"

"I'm not going to talk about this with you. Not here. Not now. Not ever. You dumped her remember? You had your chance, and you lost it." Angrily, Jerome turned back around and stormed down the corridor. For several minutes, they walked in total silence. The loudest noise was Mick's breathing. After a while, Jerome noticed a faint glow ahead of them. It was very dim, almost like a nightlight of some sort.

Mick saw it too, because he let out a sigh of relief. As they got closer to the glow, the passage began to widen. It opened into a vast room. Mick's sigh of relief, was replaced with a gasp. The entire room was filled with a shadowy mist. It was almost impossible to see, even with the faint glow. Above their heads was a hole in ceiling similar to the one they saw earlier.

On the other side of the room, Jerome was able to make out a second door. They just had to cross the room. "I wonder what that mist is," Mick pondered.

"No clue. Come on, the door is over there."

"Wait, doesn't it seem too easy to you?"

"What do you mean?" Mick gestured out over the span of the room.

"All of this work to get down here, the clues, the locked passages, the separate tunnels. Now all we have to do is cross the room and go to the other door? Doesn't it seem too easy?"

"Mick that might be the smartest thing I've ever heard you say. But what else are we going to do? Stare at it?" Jerome slowly stepped forward, testing the ground with his foot. Inch by inch he edged his way into the mist. It swirled around him, going well above his head. With a confident smile, he took another step forward. Mick watched in shock as Jerome then vanished from his sight.

For a split second Mick panicked. Had something happened to Jerome? His fear quickly turned into annoyance. "Stop playing around Jerome," he called out into the swirling mist.

"Dude, I'm not playing around. Get me out of here!" Jerome's voice called out. "And watch your step!"

"Watch my step?" Mick muttered to himself. Inching his foot forward, Mick felt the ground in front of him. It was firm, so he took another slow step. Just as Jerome had done, Mick eased himself into the mist.

As he moved along, he felt a sudden change in the floor beneath him. "OW!" Jerome yelped. "That's my hand, idiot!" Mick moved him foot t hen knelt on the ground. The floor ended, but it was impossible to see with all the mist. Jerome was hanging on to the edge of the floor with a weakening grip.

"I'll try and pull you up," Mick said as he felt for both of Jerome's hands.

"Try? Great, my life is in the hands of a meat head who doesn't know if he can pull someone up from a ledge."

"You really shouldn't make fun of the guy trying to save your life," Mick snapped. He took hold of Jerome's wrists and with a grunt, began pulling him over the edge. "You're heavier than you look, Clarke." Using all his strength, Mick hoisted Jerome up until Jerome could get a foothold, and the pair fell back on the floor.

With deep, heavy breaths, Jerome rolled onto his back. "Thanks," he breathed out. Beside him, Mick stretched his arms out.

"Um, don't worry about it, I guess."

Standing up, Jerome peered out into the mist. "There has to be a way over there." He pointed to the door that seemed so close to them. He got back down on his hands and knees and felt along the edge of the wall he fell from. There was no way to tell how deep it really was, the mist was too thick to see the bottom. Intuition told him it was too deep to survive falling, so he was going to make sure that didn't happen.

About five feet down from where he fell, Jerome found a place where the floor extended. "Campbell, get over here. I think I found a path," Jerome called out. Scrambling, Mick moved over to join Jerome by the start of the path.

"Do you think it goes straight through?" Mick asked.

"Let's find out shall we?" Testing each step in front of him, Jerome moved deeper into the mist, with Mick on his heels. About ten feet further, Jerome felt the edge of the floor again. He stopped just in time, but Mick bumped into him and he stumbled forward.

Flailing his arms, Jerome was able to catch himself. Angrily he turned around to face Mick. "Watch where you're going," he said angrily.

"Can't really see what you're doing," Mick retorted back. Jerome chose to ignore the comment and turned his attention to finding where the path turned. The closer they got to the door, the faster Jerome walked. He couldn't wait to get out of this place, and back to finding Mara.

At one point, Jerome noticed that the path split into several different directions. One went left while the other went right. In a snap decision, he turned right and kept making his way down. "Finally," Jerome said when he reached the edge of the mist. He turned around, but Mick wasn't behind him. "Campbell? Where are you?"

"No idea," Mick yelled back. Jerome was able to hear the tension in his voice.

"Well when did you stop seeing me?"

"Dude, I haven't been able to see you this whole time. Where are you?"

"Out of this mist. Listen Mick, just follow my voice. I'm going to head back into the mist and try head towards you. Just watch where you step." Annoyed, Jerome treaded back into the mist, arms out in front of him, looking for Mick.

"Keep talking, Jerome. I'm going to try and head towards you."

"About what?"

"I don't care, just talk. There are ton of different paths through here. I need to know where you are. So just talk."

"OK fine, I'll talk. Why did you dump Mara?" Jerome waited for an answer while he edged along the path. So far, he wasn't any closer to finding Mick than when he had started. "Mick?"

"Why do you care?"

"I care about Mara, that's why. And you hurt her."

"We-we just had nothing in common anymore. But listen to me Clarke, Mara and I may not go out any more, but if you hurt her I swear you'll live to regret it." Jerome chuckled at the thought of Mick trying to beat him up. He'd have to catch him first.

Mick's voice sounded a lot closer, so Jerome sped up his pace just a little bit. He was close, he could tell. "I wonder if the others have to deal with this," Mick said randomly. Jerome knew he was just trying to keep talking so they could find each other, but it was a good question. He knew he pretended not to care about the others, but deep down he feared they might be in the same mess. There was no way to tell until they all met back up.

"I think you're right across from me," Jerome said when he realized how close Mick's voice was.

"Yeah, I think so too. I still can't see you though." Jerome heard Mick take a step, and then a yelp of surprise.

"Campbell?" Jerome called out. "Mick?"

"Get me out of here!" Mick yelled. Instantly, Jerome dropped to the floor and felt the empty air at his feet. There had been a space between them, and Mick fell into it.

"Can you lift yourself up?" Jerome asked.

"I think I fell too far. There's some little ledge between two stones, but I can't hold on for much longer." The fear in Mick's voice was growing by the second. Jerome reached down farther and felt the top of Mick's head. He had fallen down a lot farther than Jerome had. Running his hand along the edge of the wall, Jerome could feel some small lip made by a row of uneven stones. "Maybe it's not that far of a drop," Mick pondered.

"You aren't going to fall," Jerome reassured. "Just hold on."

"That's getting pretty hard."

Jerome lay down on his stomach. He didn't have a lot of time. "Campbell, listen," Jerome said as he reached out towards him. "Grab my hand. I'll pull you up."

"Are you mad? I'll fall."

"You won't fall. I won't let you." Jerome could hear Mick struggling to keep his hold. "Mick, trust me." There was a pause. Mick was straining to keep up. He knew he didn't have another option.

He slowly lifted one hand off the ledge, and his grip broke. Just as he started falling, two hands gripped around his own. Mick stopped mid-fall and scrambled to get some sort of foothold. On the ledge above, Jerome strained holding Mick's dead weight. He pulled with all his might, hoping to get Mick up the edge. As Mick felt himself being raised higher, he was able to get both his feet against the rough stone wall. He stretched his free arm out, looking for the ground above him. He felt the edge brush against his hand, and grabbed for it.

"I've got it!" Mick yelled. He began using one arm to push up, while Jerome continued to pull him up. When he was high enough Jerome grabbed the back of Mick's shirt and hoisted him the rest of the way up. Both teens lay on their backs, trying to catch their breaths.

"Told you you could trust me," Jerome said when he caught his breath. His arm felt like every muscle in it was on fire, but he knew it was worth it.

"You're right. Thanks. I didn't know you could actually lift me like that."

"Neither did I."

"I feel like my shoulders been dislocated." Mick tried to roll his shoulder back, only to have it scream in pain. He felt it carefully. There was no doubt a strain on his muscles, but the bone didn't seem to be out of place. His hands were scraped and bleeding from holding on to the ledge, but other than that there was no damage.

"Ready to get out of this mad house?" Jerome asked.

"Definitely." Jerome helped Mick to his feet, and the two found their way back out of the mist.

"Never thought I'd ever say this, but I'm glad to actually see you Mick," Jerome said when he was finally able to see Mick's face. His eyes were still wide from the shock of falling, and there was a shallow cut on his forehead from scraping it against the wall. Regardless, Jerome was relieved to be out of the mist and able to see him.

"Same here. And Jerome, again, thanks for saving my life and all."

"You're welcome." Jerome flashed a split second grin at Mick, before turning his attention back to the door. It was small and wooden. Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary about it. Next to it, mounted to the wall, was a small button of sorts. With a glance at Mick, he gestured up to the button.

"Why not?" Nodding, Jerome pressed the button. There was a scraping sound, and somehow the mist began to thin. A few seconds later, it was completely gone and Jerome was able to see the entire room. A maze of difficult paths intersected across the room. Mick ran over to the edge of the ledge and peered down. "Jerome, you might want to see this."

A good twenty feet below him, the pit finally bottomed out. The floor though, was covered in razor sharp spikes. When Jerome looked down at what they had almost fallen into, he let out a low whistle. "We got lucky."

"Yeah really. Come on Jerome; let's just get out of here. We're running out of time."

"Right. Let's go." They tore their eyes away from the spike pit and ran back to the door. It opened easily, and they traveled down the dark corridor once again.

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She was in a small, dark room. That was all Mara could tell of her makeshift prison. About ten feet above her head was a small window, no bigger than a shoebox. It was too high and too small for her to get out.

When she had been thrown in here, Mara had combed over every square inch of the room. The door had been firmly locked, and no matter how much she pounded on it, it wouldn't budge.

She had no idea how long she had been trapped, but it felt like forever. Her tears had run out long ago. Now she just sat on the floor shaking in fear. Nothing made sense to her. One minute she had been in her room, and the next Philip was dragging her down the hall.

Outside Mara could hear shuffling of feet. The locked clicked, and Mara shrunk back. She wished that she could just sink back into wall and vanished from sight. As the doorknob began to turn Mara whispered to herself, "Guys, please hurry and find me."

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**One final note. If you haven't already I highly recommend reading a story called Locked In by Reflection noitcelfeR. I beta'd it and I absolutly love it! So when you're done reading this (and hopefully writing a review), go read that story! :D Peace out,**

**~Wolfie**


	27. House of Fire

**Here I am with another update. I'm not too fond of this chapter, it's all right, but there are a lot better in this story. I hope you all like it. It's on the short side, but I promise that I will make it up to all of you! For now, enjoy the chapter. Expect an update soon. Reviews inspire me to write faste (wink wink) Peace out!**

**~Wolfie**

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Chapter 27 House of Fire

"Amber, would you please let go of my arm?" Patricia asked irritably. She tried to pry her left arm free of the blonde's grip, but Amber only held on tighter.

"No way. What if we get lost down here? I don't want to be separated! Or what if a big wall comes down from the ceiling, and we get trapped on different sides?"

"You watch too many films. Now come on, we need to keep going." Patricia finally pulled out of Amber's iron grip and continued walking down the hall. They had been stumbling down this empty corridor for almost ten minutes, but nothing had changed.

About fifty feet ahead down the corridor opened up into a large room. As Amber came up behind Patricia, a row of torches suddenly came alight. Patricia stared at them as she tried to figure out how they could be lit. They cast their light through the room they were standing in. It was a bit wider than the hall, but very long. On the other side of it stood a wooden door. Evenly spaced along both walls were rows and rows of holes. Each was no bigger than a cricket ball.

As Patricia looked at the torches, Amber knelt down to tie her shoe. "Patricia, look!" she exclaimed. Under her foot was a small engraving of a flame. The stone tile it was etched into had sunken down below the others just slightly.

"It's a pressure point. It must have lit the torches. Good job, Amber."

"Thanks! What did I do?" Patricia rolled her eyes and took a step into the room. She stumbled as the tile sunk down under her weight. As she caught herself something shot in front of her nose. Startled, Patricia fell back on the ground next to Amber.

Her eyes were fixed on a point on the wall to her right. Sticking out of a crack in the wall was an arrow. Flames danced down the length of it. After several seconds nothing was left but a pile of ashes. Breathing heavily, Patricia looked up at Amber. Both of them were thinking the same thing. "That was way to close," Patricia exclaimed.

"Do you think all those stones do that?"

"One way to find out." Patricia quickly untied her shoe and slipped it off her foot. With careful aim she tossed the shoe into the middle of the room. There was a pause before another arrow shot out of the wall about ten feet from where the shoe landed. It too, was on fire. "I'm gonna go with yes."

"It's not too late to go back and find the others. I don't want to go down there. Maybe we could go with Nina and Fabian. Or Alfie. Or Mick and Jerome. Anyone really."

"Amber, we don't have a choice. We need to keep going. If we don't we're never going to save Mara."

"Right. Save Mara. That's what we're here to do. Save Mara. Save Mara." Amber kept repeating the words as she took a step in the room. As the stone sunk in, an arrow went off at the far end of the room. Amber squealed and jumped back.

"This is stupid! We can't even cross a room. I'm going and nothing is going to stop me." With a determined look set on her face, Patricia took a big step into the room. As she did another arrow went off, missing her by a few feet. She took another step, but the arrow went off a good fifteen feet away from her. "There's no pattern," she called back to Amber.

"Patricia, just stop. You're going to get hurt," Amber cried. She watched as Patricia made it closer to the center of the room. With each step an arrow went off. Some were close to where Patricia was, and some weren't. There was no pattern to them at all. Amber's entire body was shaking in fear as she watched her friend barely missing arrows.

Somehow Patricia made it to her shoe without getting hurt. She balanced on one foot while she slipped the sneaker on. In doing so, she started to fall backwards. Instinctively she dropped her other foot down to catch herself. It ended up landing on another tile. Patricia let out a scream of pain as an arrow shot out and grazed the side of her arm. It ripped a hole in her t-shirt sleeve and fell to the ground. "Patricia!" Amber screamed. At that moment the danger didn't matter to Amber. All that she could think of was getting to her friend. She ran into the middle of the room, setting off a number of arrows as she went. "Patricia, are you OK?" Amber asked. Beneath the rip in her shirt, Amber could see a thin cut running across Patricia's arm.

"I'm fine. I'm fine," Patricia snapped as she pushed Amber away. Amber knew better though. She could see that Patricia was shaking from shock. Patricia was tough, but not even she could brush off coming that close to death. The arrow didn't make it all the way across the room, so Patricia quickly picked it up and blew out the flame. The arrowhead was still hot to the touch from the flame, but the rest of it was still intact. The flame hadn't gotten down to the wooden part of it yet.

In a sudden rage of frustration and annoyance Amber ripped the arrow from Patricia's hand and threw it the rest of the way down the corridor. "Why is this so hard? We don't have time for this! Mara doesn't have time for this. I just want to find this treasure thing and go home. I want my dad back. I want to go back to England. I want this all to be over. Why does this always happen to us? First at school, and now during my vacation. It's not fair!" She buried her face in her hands and let out a strangled sob. "I-I know th-that I shouldn't cry. Bu-bu-but it's so hard, and i-it's not f-f-fair." Tears fell from her eyes as she tried to even her breathing. Patricia leaned over and placed an awkward arm around Amber's shoulders. She wasn't the hugging type, but Amber seemed to need one.

At her touch Amber flung her arms around Patricia. Days of pent up emotion and fear were now coming out, and nothing was going to stop it. For several minutes Amber cried. Patricia wasn't sure what to do to help Amber, so she just sat there and let her cry. "I'm sorry," Amber finally said.

"No, don't be. It's OK to be upset."

"No, it's not. We need to focus on saving Mara, and I'm sitting here crying. I'm all right now. Let's just get out of here." Amber stood up, and quickly dusted herself off. Her eye makeup was smeared, but Patricia didn't say anything. It wasn't important at the moment.

They were about halfway through the room. Dozens of tiles still lay before them, each one ready to launch an arrow at them. They had to be careful. A wrong step could kill them both. Patricia looked at each of the tiles around where they were standing. They were identical to each other. "Which one should we choose?" Patricia asked.

"That one." Amber pointed to the tile diagonally right from where they were. Once again Amber was clutched to Patricia's arm, but this time she didn't argue about it. At the same time they lightly pressed on the tile.

"I see it!" Amber called out. She pointed to one of the holes a little ways away from them. The tip of the arrow was just sticking out of it. Patricia put more weight on the tile and watched as the arrow was lit on fire. With the last of her weight the arrow shot out of the wall and landed harmlessly on the floor.

"This is going to take a while," Patricia muttered. They still had a bit of ground to cover, and she was getting impatient. They should be getting closer to finding Mara, but instead they were dodging flaming arrows.

Tile by tile they crossed the room. If an arrow was too close for comfort they chose a different tile. There was always one near them that didn't come anywhere near the two of them. They ended up moving in a zigzag across the room.

After what felt like an eternity Patricia and Amber reached the last row of tiles. "Home free," Patricia said excitedly. With a nod from Amber they jumped across the last row, landing perfectly in the safety of the other side.

"We did it!" Amber yelled in joy. She flung her arms around Patricia and jumped up and down. Patricia gladly returned the hug. This had been one of the hardest things she had ever done in her life. Even being held hostage by Rufus Zeno had been easier than this.

Now all that stood between them and finding the Palladium was a wooden door. "Ready?" Patricia asked when Amber let go of her.

"If we can cross a room of flaming arrows we can face anything. Let's go find that treasure!" With a satisfied grin Patricia opened the door and the pair entered into the darkness once again.

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The light that streamed into room made Mara's eyes water. She had been adjusted to the darkness, but now she couldn't see anything. "It's time we talked," a voice said to her. She recognized it as Philip.

"There's nothing to talk about," Mara said firmly. "Other than talking about why you won't let me go."

"You're my biggest bargaining chip. If I let you go then I won't get what I've been after for so long."

"We trusted you. Why are you doing this?" Mara tried to keep her voice firm, but it was hard. She knew that at any moment she could become disposable. She tried to think about what one of the others would do in a moment like this. They were all a lot tougher than her. Patricia would stare him down, totally unafraid. Amber could probably talk him to death. Nina would probably talk some sort of sense into him. And any of the guys wouldn't be afraid of him. Philip wasn't a very big guy. Mick could take him out easily. Fabian was smart enough to find a way out. Alfie wouldn't try to talk him down, just like Amber would. And Jerome…Jerome wouldn't show any fear. He would stare into Philip's eyes and wouldn't have backed down. That's what she needed to do now. Not show fear. Like her friends would do. She had to be brave like them.

"I thought you were supposed to be the smart one," Philip sneered. "Oh, wait no, that's your other friends. Fabian and Nina. They're the smart ones. They figured out the clues didn't they?"

"Philip, please let me go!" Mara cried.

"Not happening. And don't call me Philip. My name is Phokas." With that, he slammed the door shut again. When she heard the lock click a second time, Mara huddled in the darkness and cried once again.

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**See? Really short. I will make it up to you all though. You can count on that. I hope everyone has enjoyed the return of the show! I know I have. If so, I'd love to hear what you think...about Joy, Vivtor, Poppy, Fabina, anything. Happy reading!**


	28. House of Earth

**Woohoo another chapter! Things are really starting to come together for the end of this story. I'm happy and sad at the same time. But enough talk of that, enjoy this newest chapter! I'll probably have the next one up realllly late tonight or sometimes tomorrow afternoon. Depends on how distracted I get while writing and hwo tired I am tonight. Peace out**

**~Wolfie**

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Chapter 28 House of Earth

"Way to pick the short stick. Again," Alfie grumbled to himself. He always seemed to be the unlucky one to go somewhere alone. There had been the time at school and now here. There was no telling how far he had walked or how much farther he had to go. His cell phone gave him enough light to see right in front of him, but nothing else. "For all I know this tunnel will lead me right to the alien research lab. Then they'll cut me up and experiment on me."

Deep down Alfie knew that it wasn't possible, but to him talking about aliens made him not as afraid. It made him feel like he was the hero in a science fiction film. The hero always came out alive in those films. That was what he wanted now. To get out of this mess alive. For all of them to. When Amber invited everyone to her house he had been expecting a few weeks to hang out and have fun, not to be wandering around an ancient tunnel looking for a treasure.

The light of the phone went out again and Alfie was plunged into darkness. He hit a button again but no light came on. "No. Say it ain't so. Please don't let this happen!" Alfie cried out. He hit several more buttons before the truth sunk in fully. His phone was dead. No phone meant no light. And no light meant that anything could happen. Alfie was stuck in a pitch black tunnel all alone.

He began having flashes from his memory. Being trapped in the cellar. Seeing the things he saw. He tried so hard to block out those memories, but they were coming out now. Alfie hadn't felt this helpless in a long time, and it terrified him. This time though no one was going to come and get him out. He was on his own.

It was then that the feeling came back. The tightness in his chest like someone was trying to snap him in half. It only came when he was really scared. "Just chill," Alfie said to himself. "No one is down here to hurt you." He kept repeating this to himself as he braced himself against the wall. As he focused on his breathing the fear began to subside. The tightness in his chest went away and he was able to breathe.

"I have to keep going. The others are counting on me." With nothing to guide him Alfie kept making his way down the dark hall. Several times he lost track of which direction he was facing and ended up walking into a wall. After smacking his nose against it for the third time Alfie decided to walk with one hand on the wall to guide him.

Sometime later Alfie noticed a drastic change in the floor beneath his feet. It wasn't hard stone. It was softer. It moved as he stepped. Alfie quickly brushed a hand on the ground. "No way. It's dirt." He took a handful of it and let it sift between his fingers. Somehow the floor was now made of dirt. Alfie continued walking, still confused by the sudden change of flooring.

"Is that? Yes!" Alfie started running when he saw a faint glow ahead of him. The corridor ended and at the end of it was a chamber of some sort. Above his head was a hole similar to the one back in the last room. Moonlight streamed through and cast everything in a pale glow. In the distance he could hear the roar and crash of the waves. The hole above his head was too narrow to see out of. It was a long, thin crack, most likely completely invisible from the other side.

With the new light Alfie was able to take in his surroundings. He thought the floor had been covered in dirt, but it was much more than that. It was actually made of dirt. Like no floor had been placed there at all. "No way," Alfie yelped when he saw what else was in the room. Empty, rectangular holes sat in rows through the room. There had to be at least two hundred. At the top of each hole was a small square stone. Alfie knew what they were instantly. Graves. The room was filled with graves. And graves meant dead people.

On shaking legs Alfie went to the closest grave. He looked down inside it only to see that it was empty. He went to the next one and found the same thing. "Why make all these graves but not use them?" he asked aloud.

Across the crypt, room thing was a door. Alfie ran as fast as he could to it. When he pulled on the handle it wouldn't budge. It was locked. "Now what?" Below the handle was a small keyhole. "Where's Nina when you need her?" With a sinking feeling in his stomach Alfie guessed where the key was. In one of the graves. It would make the most sense. The question was—which grave?

"What would Fabian or Nina do?" Alfie asked himself. He knew they would see some small detail and solve the whole thing in a matter of minutes. But he wasn't Fabian or Nina, so that probably wasn't going to happen. The only option he had was to check every single grave.

Starting at one end of the room, Alfie walked up to each grave and looked inside it. After looking in almost thirty graves he knew that this plan wasn't going to work. With a defeated sigh he sat on the ground and leaned against a headstone. It was then that he noticed something on the marker next to him. A carving of some sort in the middle of it. "Of course!" Alfie jumped up and looked at the carving. It was a series of shapes. Two triangles, a square and a circle. Nothing about it was familiar to him though. He turned and looked at the one he was just leaning against. That stone had three circles and a rectangle. Once again nothing about it was familiar to him. Alfie then ran to check more markers. Each one of them had a combination of shapes on it.

"What were those shapes?" Alfie asked himself. He knew that there was significance to the shapes and this entire mystery. He knew they were triangles and were somehow connected to the different elements. Deciding to get back to work, Alfie began looking for any headstones that only had triangles on them. There were so many that after a while he lost track of where they were. "Oh I know!" With one swift motion Alfie ripped off his shoe and sock. He slipped his shoe back on his foot and began ripping the sock. With the narrow strips of fabric Alfie was able to mark which graves held only triangles. When he ran out of fabric he did the same thing with his other sock.

It took some time, buy eventually he marked every headstone that only had triangles. It brought the number down from several hundred to only about forty. During that time Alfie tried to remember what the four triangles looked like. The picture in his mind was fuzzy, but he knew that they were either point up or point down. None of them pointed to the side. With that knowledge he ran back through and took off his marker from any stones with side pointing triangles.

"Hmm, about twenty left. Come on, Alfie. Think! What were those triangles?" This is what he got for not paying more attention. It's gotten him in trouble in the past but never like this. He stopped in front one of the headstones. It didn't look right to him. From what he remembered there were two point up triangles and two point down. This one had three point down triangles.

"The first clue we found was the one about water. But which one was that?" In a desperate attempt Alfie shut his eyes and tried to picture the four symbols above the tunnels. It had been hard to see, and they were all more focused on how they were going to get to the treasure. "It…pointed down. I remember that. And some of them had lines!" Alfie opened his eyes and ran to each of the marked stones again. He was able to eliminate five more headstones from his group.

"Come on Alfie. You can remember this. This has to be the earth room. So that's the earth symbol. Earth was the second clue." He walked up and down the rows as he thought.

And then he saw it. Two point up triangles, two point down triangles. The second one pointed down and didn't have a line through it. The last two did have lines through them. He was almost positive that it was the right grave. Taking a very literal leap of faith, Alfie jumped down into the grave. The dirt was soft under his feet, but it felt like there was something just under the surface. "I hope zombies don't try to pull me down under," he muttered as he brushed the dirt away.

Underneath a thin layer of dirt was a wooden chest. It was unlocked and opened surprisingly easy. A small metal key sat in the bottom of the chest. "Yes!" Alfie cheered in joy. He took the key and stuck it in his pocket. Now all he had to do was get out of the grave. It was then that he realized that he may have made a huge mistake. The grave was too deep for him to climb out of.

Panic settled in Alfie as he tried to jump up and grab the ledge above him. The dirt gave away and he fell back. Dirt settled in his hair and all over his clothes. "There has to be a better way to do this," he muttered. The chest was about a foot and a half tall, just enough to give him a boost.

As he balanced on the top of the chest the top of the grave was just out of his reach. "You can do this," Alfie told himself. With one powerful leap he grabbed onto the ledge and began scrambling up the wall of the grave. When he was safely back out of the grave Alfie couldn't help but fist pump the air.

The key was still in his pocket so he wasted no time in running over to the door and unlocking it. It swung open easily. With a grin he pocked the key and took his first steps into the new hall.

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Mara swore to herself that the next time that door opened, she would be ready. She was going to do everything she could to escape. So when she heard the lock click a second time, Mara stood up and was ready to run.

Before she got the chance though, the door was thrown open and someone was shoved into the room. It caught Mara off guard and by the time she realized what was happening the door had shut again.

"Hello?" Mara whispered. "Who's here?"

"Who is that?" a male voice responded. Mara focused her attention on where the voice was coming from. The moonlight from the window wasn't enough for her to see the face of her new cellmate. "Who are you?"

"My name is Mara."

"Mara Jaffray?"

"Yes. How did you know that?" The darkness was suddenly lit by a faint green glow. The man had a watch. In the dim light she was able to get a better look at him. Blue eyes shone back at her. They were once bright, happy eyes but now all they showed was exhaustion and stress. Mara knew those eyes. She had looked at the same eyes a million times before.

"I'm so sorry my dear. You should never have gotten involved in this mess."

"Mr. Millington, I can't believe that it's you!" Mara cried out.


	29. House of Water

**OK so you have no idea how excited I am to post this chapter. I LOVED writing it. So I'm going to shut up now and let you read. Peace out.**

**~Wolfie**

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Chapter 29 House of Water

"How long do you think this might go?" Nina asked. She and Fabian had been walking down the same corridor since they all split up, and so far nothing had changed. There had been no other turns or changes. They were simply walking down a really long hallway.

"There's no way to tell. The island is almost eighty kilometers long and forty wide."

"So you think these tunnels could go under the entire island?"

"It's possible. And considering how hard it was to simply just get down here I can bet that it was made as hard as possible to actually find anything." Nina glanced down at her watch. It was quarter to eleven. They had forty-five minutes before they had to meet up with the others. If this place was as big as Fabian thought it could be, they wouldn't have time to find the Palladium.

"Look!" Fabian suddenly called. Ahead of them was a soft glow. "It's light." They began to run towards the light. Light was always a good sign. Nina was more than happy to be out of the tunnel. But what they walked into was the last thing she had expected to see.

They stood in the mouth of some great cave. Above them was an opening in the roof. Moonlight streamed through and illuminated the entire place. Jagged rock rose up to the top of the cave, the moonlight casting shadows off of different ledges. Nearby Nina could hear the sounds of the ocean. They were still near the coast. The rock beneath them was wet and slippery. Water gathered in shallow pools around them. Despite the circumstances of why they were in this place, Nina couldn't deny that it was beautiful.

As they made their way deeper into the cave, Nina had a feeling that something bad was about to happen. The feeling of dread she had in her stomach since they found out Mara had been taken had practically doubled. "It's amazing that no one has found this place," Fabian said in awe.

He went to climb up a small rock, but it was slippery so he fell right back off. As he did, his foot kicked over a smaller rock. "You all right?" Nina asked. She reached out a hand to help him up and laughed slightly at his blush.

"Fine. Hey…Nina do you hear that?" He held up a finger to silence Nina. She tried listening but all she could hear was the sound of the ocean. "Running water."

"Where's it coming from?" Before Fabian had a chance to answer a sheet of ice cold water came cascading down on both of them. Both teens were drenched in seconds.

Fabian took Nina's hand and led them away from the falling water. It was coming into the cave at an alarming rate. "Up there," Fabian yelled over the roar. Near the top of cave were a series of at least ten large stone beams. Water poured from them like a giant faucet. "Aqueducts." The water continued to fall from them, and the pools in the cave were starting to rise.

"How do we get out of here?" Nina screamed. There was no other way out of the cave besides the door they came through. Nina spun in a circle as she tried to find another door out. They only had so much time to find a way out before the water rose too high. If the water rose too much it would flood the corridor and they would be trapped. It would be too long to try and swim down if the entire thing flooded. At the rate the water was coming into the cave, it was highly possible that it could. Already there was water seeping into her shoes.

Fabian tugged on Nina's hand again and pointed to a large rock. The water had yet to reach it, so it was perfectly dry. The water made the rock even slicker than it had been, and it caused Nina and Fabian to slip and slide the whole way to the rock. It was just wide enough for both of them to sit on top. "Any ideas?" Nina asked nervously. Time was limited, and if they didn't think of something they would die in this cave.

"Ehh…working on it." Fabian looked out over the cave. Even though it was very tall, the cave floor itself wasn't that big. About the size of football pitch, but most of the space was taken up by the ever growing pools of water. It was then that an idea hit him. And he didn't like it one bit.

"Nina, what if the way out is down there?" He pointed to one of the pools of water. "I can't find any other way out than climbing up. And we're more likely to break our necks doing that." Nina watched the water fall down into the pool from the aqueduct. He was right; there was a good chance they had to go down there. She knew Fabian didn't like the idea. Swimming wasn't one of his strengths.

The water was getting deeper by the second. If they were going to search the pools they would have to do it now. "I'm going in."

"What? Nina, are you mad? You don't know how deep it is. What if there's a current down there? You could get swept away!"

"I know, Fabian," Nina said as she began pulling her hair into a ponytail. "But we don't have another choice. I'm going to go check it out."

"Let me go instead then."

"You and I both know that you aren't that good of a swimmer. I was on the swim team at my old school. I can do this. I know I can." She began to climb down from the rock with Fabian right behind her. The water came to the top of her shoes now, and it was still rising. Nina quickly chose the largest of the pools to start in. It had the best chances of having a way out.

Fabian looked down into the pool of water. There was no way to tell how deep it was, or how big. For all they knew it ran all the way out the ocean. "Nina, just be careful."

"I will be. I won't be down for long." She began taking a few deep breaths as she prepared herself for going under the water. Fabian looked from Nina to the water and back again. The idea of him not knowing what was going to happen down there terrified him. He hated not knowing what was going on. He needed to have understanding of things. It was just part of who he was. And now the girl he cared for more than anything was going down into the depths of the unknown. He wasn't sure what scared him more. Not knowing what was down there, or not knowing if Nina was going to come back up.

Before his brain had the chance to stop his actions, Fabian leaned over and gave Nina a very brief, chaste kiss. Both of them froze and stared at each other. "F-f-for good luck," Fabian stuttered. His mind was in overdrive. He had kissed Nina with absolutely no warning. His body just reacted to the thought of her not coming back.

Nina's brain couldn't think of any words to respond. All the neurons in her brain had just fried to a crisp. Finally she was able to string together a simple sentence. "I'll be up in a bit." She turned her back to Fabian, mentally kicking herself for not saying something else, and got ready to jump in the pool.

She took one final breath and slid into the cold water. The force from the incoming water pushed her down father than she thought it would, causing her to spin in the water. It was much colder than she thought it would be and she almost let out a gasp of surprise as her skin was chilled.

The light was very dim but there was just enough that she could see the edges of the pool. The incoming water kept pushing her farther down which made it a little bit easier to reach the bottom of the pool. Nina guessed it to be about ten feet deep. The pressure made her ears ring, but she ignored it and kept swimming. Swimming along the bottom Nina couldn't find any passages or anything that even resembled a way out.

Up above Fabian couldn't take his eyes off the spot where Nina dove down. The falling water made his hair stick in his eyes, but he stopped pushing it out of the way a while ago. The water was up to his ankles now. There was no way to tell how much higher it was going to rise.

Somewhere above him Fabian heard a low rumbling sound. It wasn't the water. Nervously he looked up and examined the roof of the cave. The rumbling grew louder until Fabian saw it. Small rocks falling from the roof of the cave. They were small pebbles, but the rumbling sound proved that something bigger was coming. Fabian knew that Nina didn't have a lot of time. If a big rock fell into the pool, Nina could be killed. "Nina!" Fabian screamed above all the other noise. Until she came back to the surface he had no way of knowing if she heard him.

Down below Nina was having no luck finding a way out. She had searched the whole bottom floor of the cave. Her breath was running out, so she knew she had to start heading back up to the surface. The down current from the waterfall made it difficult, but she kept going.

Fabian was freaking out waiting for Nina. He looked back and forth between the pool and the place where the rocks were about to fall. Above the noise of the water there was one final rumble. Fabian watched in horror as a series of rocks came falling towards him. He dove out of the way, but a few of the rocks fell into the water. Fabian crawled over to the edge of the pool and looked frantically for Nina.

Nina was still trying to make it to the surface when she saw something enter the water. In the dimness she wasn't sure what it was, but she didn't have time to think about it. As she padded towards the top something hard struck her in the shoulder. A strangled scream escaped her throat and water quickly filled her lungs. The combined force of the water and the thing that hit her sent her spiraling back down to the bottom of the pool. As she hit the bottom Nina knew then that she wouldn't make it back up to the top in time. She was going to drown.

Fabian felt like he was wasting time. He was so afraid of what had happened to Nina. If a rock had hit her in the head she could die. But maybe it hadn't. Then why wasn't she back up yet? He could try to go in after her, but he wasn't that great of a swimmer. They could both drown, but if he did nothing, Nina didn't stand a chance. He knew he only had one option. Taking a huge gulp of air he jumped feet first into the pool of water.

The coldness of the water shocked him, but he kept swimming downwards. It was almost impossible to see, but near the bottom Fabian saw a shadow. It was Nina. She was lying limp on the bottom of the pool. A rock lay next to her. He reached the bottom easily enough. He slipped his arms around her thin frame and pushed off from the ground. She was much lighter than he thought she would be. Regardless of how light she was, trying to swim up against a downward current without using his arms was more difficult than he thought it would be.

Using every last bit of strength he had Fabian continued to kick. He wasn't going to let them die here. Not after everything they had been through. At one point he felt his arm brush against something metal sticking out of the rock. He couldn't stop to see what it was though. The surface was just within his reach. It would take one more kick.

The fresh air rushed into Fabian's lungs as he took a long, deep breath. Never before had air felt so good. With Nina still in his arms, Fabian paddled to the edge of the pool. When he got her out Fabian managed to carry her back to the higher rock they had been on before. His lungs were burning from the air they were still lacking, but that was the least of his worries. "Nina?" he called out as loudly as he could muster. "Nina, can you hear me?" He watched for any movement from his friend. There was no movement from her, no rising and falling of her chest. "Oh God no. Nina, don't die on me."

Several years prior Fabian had learned CPR, but he had never had to use it. Until now at least. Pulling the information from the recesses of his brain, Fabian alternated chest compressions and artificial respiration. While he tried to save Nina, he was praying and begging to every deity that he had ever heard of for her to not die.

After long, antagonizing moments Nina let out a weak cough. "Nina?" Fabian whispered hoarsely. Her coughs grew stronger and Fabian rushed to turn her over to her side. "Oh God, Nina. You're alive. I can't believe you're alive."

"What happened?" she whispered. One minute she had been seeing a growing darkness, and now here she was outside the pool.

"Y-you almost drowned. I thought I was going to lose you." As Nina sat up Fabian threw his arms around her in a secure hug. As he hugged her Nina tried to piece together everything that had happened in the past few minutes.

"You got me out?"

"Yeah."

"And you gave me CPR?"

"Yeah."

Turning scarlet Nina pulled out of Fabian's hug and before she knew what was fully happening, she kissed him. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet. We still have to get out of here."

"I couldn't find anything down there, Fabian. It's not too late to go back the way we came."

"I think I know. Stay here. I'll be right back." Fabian slid off the rock. He moved as quickly as he could through the water until he reached the edge of the pool. The metal he had felt hadn't been too deep. It wouldn't be hard to find it again. With a final glance to Nina, Fabian jumped back into the water.

"Fabian!" Nina screamed as she watched him go back under. She had no idea what he was thinking. All she could do was watch and hope. Once he was used to the cold of the water again Fabian set to work finding the metal. It hadn't been more than three feet from the surface.

No matter how hard Fabian looked he couldn't find it. Perhaps he had imagined it. Just as he was about to give up and resurface, he felt it. A narrow metal lever. It felt rusty and stiff from being underwater. Fabian bobbed back up to the surface for a breath of air. "I think I found something," he called to Nina. She nodded from the rock she was still sitting on. He took another breath and went back down. He was tired and lightheaded but somehow Fabian was able to shove the lever down.

On the rock, Nina watched in amazement as the water stopped flowing from the aqueducts. Fabian had done it. As he resurfaced and pulled himself out of the water, she scampered down from the rock and ran over to him. When they reached each other, they held each other in a tight hug. "You did it!" Nina exclaimed. They pulled apart from each other and simply stared at each other, shin deep in water. They were both soaking wet, shivering and exhausted. But, at the same time neither could have been happier.

"You know it's kinda funny when I think about it. I was able to dive into a pool of water and stop a bunch of aqueducts from drowning us, but I couldn't tell you something I've been trying to say since we got Greece."

"Well, there's no one here to interrupt us now. Say what you need to say." From behind her wet bangs Fabian could see Nina's eyes shine.

"Wow, um, this went so differently in my head. Nina, you're the most remarkable person I have ever met in my life. You're curious, adventurous, kind, funny, and so many other things. After the dance back at school I thought I missed my chance. But here we are now, hunting down another mystery, and I've been reminded all over again of how much you mean to me. What I guess I'm trying to say is…Nina, would you go out with me? I mean, if we actually get out of here alive. I know this is probably the worst possible place to ask, and we need to focus on finding Mara and…"

Nina cut off his rambling with another kiss. "I'll, um, take that as a yes," Fabian squeaked. He could feel his face growing redder by the second.

"What do you think?"

"Right. Yeah. Great. Yeah! That's really great!" Fabian broke out into a mile wide grin that matched Nina's.

"So, um, how are we going to get out of here? That date will never happen unless we find a way out." Fabian glanced around the cave. If the lever had stopped the aqueducts, maybe it had opened up a way out as well. His eyes settled on a spot in the back corner. An opening in the rock wall that hadn't been there before. Holding Nina's hand in his, Fabian led the way to the doorway.

They stood in the opening for several seconds, peering into the darkness. Finally Nina turned to Fabian and with a firm voice she stated, "Let's do this."

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

"How much do you all know?" Mr. Millington asked.

"A lot. We've been following the clues Aspída left. We know about the Children of Erebus, and about the Palladium."

"Who's we?"

"Myself, Nina, Fabian, Patricia, Alfie, Mick, Jerome and Amber."

"You have to believe me, Mara. I didn't want any of you involved in this. I thought you would all be safe." Mr. Millington wrung his hands nervously. Mara had met Amber's father several times before this trip, and she had never seen him this upset about anything. He was always so calm and put together. This man, who was without a doubt Mr. Millington, was nothing like the man she had come to know. "I've put all of you in danger. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"Mr. Millington, please, it was nothing you did. Now it's your turn to believe me. They will get us out of here. All of my friends, you daughter. They will get us out of here. Amber has been set on finding you since the day you disappeared. Nothing is going to stop her, or any of them, from finding us. We just have to wait." Before Mr. Millington could answer the door swung open once again. Phokas stood before them with a smirk plastered on his face.

"Time for you to see how much your precious Aspída has failed, Nicholas. You too, Mara. You get to see this as well. The rebirth of Paidiá tou Érevos is upon us!"

* * *

**Is everyone happy now? You've all been begging and pleading for Fabina for months and I finally gave it to you. Was it worth the wait? It's of course by no means the end of it, but this is where it gets fun. I hope I've finally satisfied your Fabina needs. I've been bouncing up and down in my seat for the past 10 minutes in excitement for posting this chapter. Let me know what you think!**


	30. House of Conspiracy

**So I've been having some problems with FF recently and I have to reupload this chapter. This is the same chapter that I posted earlier today, sorry for the confusion. Peace out.**

**~Wolfie**

* * *

Chapter 30 House of Conspiracy

The light of the room blinded Mara. She had been held up in the dark for so long that the sudden light was almost unbearable. Tears stung her eyes as she brought her hand up over her face.

Behind her she could hear Mr. Millington shuffling along. He hadn't said a word since Phokas took them from their prison cell. "We're here," Phokas finally said. He released Mara's arm to insert a key into a lock. When the door swung open Mara took in the sight before her.

A grand hall welcomed them. The walls were lined with large, ancient paintings of Greek gods and goddesses. Mara had a feeling that they were all originals. At the far end of the room was one painting that was larger than the others. It depicted a man covered in a dark mist. There was nothing around him but black emptiness. His eyes seemed to completely dull and emotionless. As Mara stared into those eyes, she was filled with a sense of emotionless as well. It was like they sucked the life right out of her.

Someone cleared their throat, and Mara was brought out of her trance. Set up in the center of the hall were a series of chairs. All but two of the chairs were occupied. As Mara studied the faces of the other people in the room she recognized several faces. The woman they saw at the bank days ago, a doctor that was at the hospital Mick was in, a police officer from the night Mr. Millington went missing, and even another man that Mara had seen working around the Millington estate. A dozen other people sat around as well. Mara was sure that they were all members of the community, people they had come across their entire stay in Greece.

Phokas pushed Mara into the room and led her and Mr. Millington through the center of the circle. He led them up to an empty chair that sat in front of the large painting. "You try to escape, you will be killed," Phokas hissed in her ear. He released his grip on her arm and returned to the second empty chair. The people in the room stared at Mara and Mr. Millington.

"Kalós írthate, fíloi. Welcome, friends!" a voice called out. "I am pleased that you could all be here. And you, honored guests, as well." Mara looked around for the source of the voice. It seemed to echo through the entire room. No one else seemed surprised; they just sat in their seats and didn't talk.

A firm hand was placed on Mara's shoulder causing her to jump and let out a stifled scream. Behind her stood a tall, thin man dressed in a robe similar to what the Aspída members had worn. Brown hair came down to his shoulders, and a thick beard masked most of his face. He smiled at Mara, showing a row of perfectly straight, white teeth. "You do not need to be afraid young one," he said gently.

"Pandaros, let the girl go. She has nothing to do with any of this," Mr. Millington pleaded. The man, Pandaros, let go of Mara's shoulder and glared at Mr. Millington.

"I disagree, Nicholas, she has everything to do with this," he spat back. He hissed out the name Nicholas with so much spite, Mara could tell that these two men hated each other. He looked back over at Mara. "But where are my manners? Your name is Mara correct?"

Mara nodded meekly. Even with his warm smile, she could tell that this man could be dangerous. With a glance over at Mr. Millington Mara quickly stepped away from Pandaros. "My son has told me a great deal about you, Mara. He said that you have a very curious mind."

Pandaros waited patiently for Mara to answer. After several seconds he glared at her. "It is very rude to ignore your elders. Now, tell me, how much do you and your little friends know?"

"We know that—"

"Speak up, girl!"

Mara took a deep breath and spoke as loud as she could. "We know that Aspída hid a treasure, the Palladium, and that you want to find it. You're all part of the Children of Erebus. We've followed the clues, and my friends are trying to find the treasure." Pandaros blinked several times in surprise. He obviously wasn't expecting the answer that Mara had given them.

"Phokas!" he suddenly roared. The young man rose from his chair and went to stand before Pandaros. With them standing side by side, Mara was able to see the similarities between them. Phokas was Pandaros' son. Pandaros grabbed the front of Phokas' shirt and pulled him close to his face. He whispered something in his ear and Phokas shook his head. Pandaros' face turned bright red with fury. "Mou eípes óti den tha prospathí̱sei na páei metá apó to thisavró. An to vreíte kai na tou dó̱sete se ekeínous tous anói̱tous, egó tha katastrafeí. Emeís óloi tha katastrafeí. Epílysitou. Tó̱ra!"

Phokas nodded to his father and ran out of the room. "What did he say?" Mara whispered to Mr. Millington.

"Phokas had told Pandaros that Amber and the others would not try to go after the treasure. He said that if they give the Palladium to Aspída, then he will be ruined. Then he told him to go fix it." Mara shuddered. The thought of him going after her friends terrified her. She just hoped that they were somewhere safe.

When the door to the hall was firmly shut Pandaros turned his attention back to Mara and Mr. Millington. He chuckled slightly as he walked in circles around them. "You never cease to amuse me, Nicholas. All this time I've had you as my guest, and now I find out that you had your daughter out searching for the treasure. You are a deilós, a coward."

"I told Amber and her friends nothing about the treasure. I would never put her in danger like that."

"Then how do they know?"

"I don't know." Pandaros sneered, but turned away. From the circle of people, the woman from the bank stood up. If Mara remembered correctly her name was Anna. She began speaking in rapid Greek, occasionally pointing to Mara. When she finished speaking Mara was more confused than ever. Her tone had been calm, almost friendly. These people were not acting like she thought they would. They all seemed like perfectly normal people, the kind of people that would say hello to you on the street, or hold a door open for you. With the exception of Pandaros yelling at Phokas, everyone was so calm and placid.

Phokas smiled widely. He stood before the group and said, "Anna brings up a good point. Perhaps the fact that the children know more than we thought about the hunt is a good thing. We have been trying to get them off the trail of our treasure; for fear that they were working with Aspída. They know a great deal more than we thought, so perhaps now it's time to put their knowledge to good use. We will not stop them. We will simply make them bring the Palladium to us." Everyone in the room began clapping. In the pit of her stomach, Mara knew that her friends were in greater danger than ever.

"Sir, what will happen once they give us the treasure?" a man asked.

With another look at Mara Pandaros stated, "Tha eínai perittó." Mara looked to Mr. Millington for a translation, but he didn't look at her. His face had grown pale and there was a fear growing in his eyes.

Pandaros nodded to Mara and Mr. Millington. "It has been a pleasure speaking to you both. We will do so again soon. Aaron, take them back to their room." With that Pandaros turned and walked out of the hall. A large, burley man came up and guided Mara and Mr. Millington out of the hall. He led them down the same corridors they had walked down with Phokas. When Mara recognized the room that she had been in she was almost thankful. For now they were safe. Aaron opened the door and allowed Mara and Mr. Millington to step inside. He shut the door and they were encased in darkness once again.

A cloud must have moved because moonlight started streaming through the small window. "Mr. Millington, what's going to happen?" Mara asked softly.

"I'm sorry, Mara. I'm so sorry."

"Please Mr. Millington. Tell me. What is going to happen?" She looked him in the eyes, pleading with him.

"Pandaros is going to convince Amber and the others to bring the Palladium here. Most likely in exchange for our freedom. But I'm afraid that once they have it, all of us are dispensable."

"You don't mean that they will…" Mara didn't want to finish the sentence.

"They will. None of them would think twice about it either. Any lives lost in the gaining of the treasure are simply necessary casualties."

"No…and if it meant getting us out of here, the others will do anything. They're going to walk straight into a trap."

"It seems that way. Pandaros has always been willing to do whatever he had to, if it meant reaching his goal. He thought Aspída was too passive. That's why he left. And took all our secrets with him."

"Pandaros used to be in Aspída? That meant he had a ring like yours right?"

"Of course. I'm sure that my colleagues told you about the rings."

"Yes. And that's not all. The night that you were taken, Nina found an Aspída ring of the floor of the study. But it wasn't yours, because it was found in the attic. That's how we found out about the mystery. From the rings. Adriane and Lazar had spoken to Amber, Nina, Fabian, Alfie and Patricia about all of it. They were the ones who told us that you were the only one who had the first clue. It all started when Nina found that ring."

Mr. Millington didn't say anything for a long time. He just sat there. Mara was afraid that she had said something to upset him. Finally he spoke. "It was Phokas. I had trusted him. His disguise was perfect, he worked for me for years and I didn't suspect anything. When he came into my study that night, I didn't suspect anything. He came up to my desk and set the ring in front of me. I had no idea where he got it, and I was about to ask him about it, but I never got the chance to. A member of Paidiá tou Érevos living in my house, working for me. He has the blood of a traitor in his veins, and I didn't see it."

"None of us did." The pair sat in silence for a few minutes. Something was still bothering Mara, something that didn't make sense. Well, none of it made sense, but there was just one thing that was sticking out of place. She had to find out what it was. "Mr. Millington," she asked. "What did Phokas mean by 'the rebirth of Paidiá tou Érevos is upon us?"

"Aspída has been doing more than protecting the Palladium for all of these years. We have also been working to keep the Children of Erebus from fully reuniting. Their groups have been scattered across the entire planet. If they manage to reconnect with all of their other members, then there will be nothing that can stop them."

"So they're an international group?"

"Yes, Aspída is as well. We work to keep their plans from succeeding. The Children of Erebus have goals from corporate scandals to government infiltration. They think that they will be able to take over the world."

"But why don't more people know about them then? The governments of other countries!"

"They are very good at covering their tracks. That is what makes them dangerous. Nobody knows that they even exist, so when they hit, it causes even more damage. For the past fifty years though, they have been disorganized. Our efforts to keep them apart have worked. But, Pandaros believes that if they get the Palladium we will be unable to stop them."

"And they'll have total world domination. Mr. Millington, this sounds like something from a James Bond novel."

"That it does, Mara. That it does."

"So what can we do to help the others? Pandaros sent Phokas out after them."

"There is nothing we can do. We just have to hope that they get the Palladium to Aspída, before Phokas gets to them."


	31. House of Reunions

**Hey everyone, I know it's been a while since I've updated. And I'm sorry for that. Heck, I don't even want to keep you all waiting any longer. Peace out.**

**~Wolfie**

* * *

Chapter 31 House of Reunions

"Patricia, how much longer? My feet are sore," Amber whined. Nothing had changed since they left the fire room nearly fifteen minutes ago.

"I don't know, Amber. Just quit your complaining. It's getting really annoying." The light of her phone went out, but before she hit it again something caught her eye. A second light further down the hall. But this light wasn't staying in place, it was moving towards them. Amber must have seen it too, because Patricia could hear her suck in her breath.

There was a god chance that it was someone they didn't want to run into. A member of Aspída, or worse, one of the Children of Erebus. If they had found the secret tunnel, then it was over. "What if it's a ghost?" Amber whispered.

"Shut up! Do you want them to hear us? We'll sneak up on them. Follow me," Patricia hissed in Amber's ear. Grabbing her wrist, Patricia dragged Amber down the hall towards the light. As they got closer Patricia could hear two people walking.

"How much longer do you think the phone will last?" one of the voices asked. Patricia took that moment to jump forward, and alongside Amber, scream at the top of her lungs. The two people across from them jumped back and screamed just as loudly. The light was flashed up and Patricia caught a glance at bushy brown hair.

"Hold on, hold on hold on. Amber, will you stop screaming?" Patricia yelled. "Jerome? Mick? Is that you?"

"Patricia? Amber?" Jerome asked back. "What were you trying to do? Scare us to death?"

"We thought you were ghosts," Amber admitted.

"Ghosts? Really Ambs?" Mick asked annoyance in his voice.

"Sorry."

"How did you two get here?" Jerome asked.

"Same way you two did. We followed the corridor. So no sign of the others then?"

"Nothing. And no sign of the treasure?"

"Nope."

Mick sighed loudly. "Well then we've wasted all this time."

"And Patricia and I almost died!" Amber added.

"Join the club," Jerome muttered. He turned away from the group and began examining the walls.

"What happened to you two?" Patricia asked.

"Two words. Spike pit."

"Yikes. We had flaming arrows," Patricia explained. "I wonder what the others had to go through…"

"Guys! Check this out!" Jerome called. "I found a door." Inset slightly into the wall was a wooden door. Jerome pushed on it and it swung open.

"Oh great. Another dark corridor," Mick grumbled. "At least we have more light now."

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"There are no zombies down here. There are no zombies down here. There are no zombies down here." Alfie kept repeating his mantra to himself and he stumbled in the dark. It was completely silent, besides the sound of his breathing and the pounding of his heart. If there were zombies, they would hear him from a mile away.

He took a moment to try and slow down his pounding heart. In the silence another sound rang through his ears. More footsteps. And they were getting closer. He tried to yell out, hoping to scare away whoever it was. But all that came out of his throat was a strangled choke. The footsteps were upon him. "Please don't eat my brains!" Alfie screamed. He dropped to the floor and screamed. So this was how it was going to end? All alone in a dark corridor.

"Alfie! Alfie stop screaming!" a voice called out. "It's Nina and Fabian!"

"It is? Prove it! Uhhh…in my Sibuna initiation, what did I throw into the fire?"

"Your jester hat," a second voice answered. "The one Patricia and Mara got you for your last birthday."

"Nina? Fabian? Oh you have no idea how glad I am to see you guys!" Alfie leapt up and threw his arms around his friends. "Why are you two all wet?"

"Long story," Nina answered.

"Why are you walking around without a light?" Fabian asked.

"Battery died. What about you two?"

"They got wet," Fabian admitted.

"Come on let's get going. We found another door back there, but then we heard you. It's not too far down." Fabian and Nina le the way down the tunnel until they reached a wooden door. The tunnel was very similar to the one they just came from; long, narrow, and dark. The continued walking until Alfie bumped into something in front of him. It was another door.

This one was different than the others had been. While up until now all the doors had been simple and made of wood. This one however, seemed to be made of metal. Fabian found the handle and the door slid open.

"Well I wasn't expecting this," Nina mused as they stepped through the doorway. The hall led to a well lit circular room with two other doors. Polished marble floor covered what had once been hard stone. In the center of the room was a glass prism like the one they had found earlier.

The two remaining doors stood adjacent to where they were standing. Each of made of bronze, covered in carvings of Greek deities. As Nina looked at the door on the right, she noticed the doorknob turning. "Guys," she whispered. With a motion to the door, all three teens stood rigid as the knob turned the rest of the way and the door swung open.

They relaxed when four familiar faces appeared in the doorway. "Nina! Fabian! Alfie!" Amber shrieked when she spotted her friends. The blonde ran to them and threw her arms around each of her friends. Patricia and Mick joined in on the group hug. Jerome, trying to be cool, remained out the outside of the circle.

"Get in here mate," Mick called. He grabbed Jerome by the arm and pulled him into the circle. With a sigh, he joined in and the seven of them held onto their group hug.

"Why are you two all wet? Patricia asked Fabian and Nina when the hug ended.

"Yeah. And Alfie, why are you covered in dirt?" Amber asked.

"The two of you don't look that much better. Trixie, what happened to your t-shirt?" Alfie asked as he pointed to Patricia's torn sleeve.

"Oh you know, just a flaming arrow out of the wall."

"It was so scary! I thought we were going to be steward," Amber added.

"You mean skewered?" Jerome asked.

"That's what I said. Everywhere we stepped, arrows came flying out of the wall. And they were on fire!"

"Sounds just as bad as what we did," Mick claimed. "There was a room full of fog, and it was like a maze. Except, if you took a wrong step, you fell into a pit of spikes."

Nina's eyes grew wide. "These guys really knew how to set a trap. Fabian and I almost drowned in a cave."

"Right so we all had a lousy time getting here. But we're all together now so let's go find that treasure!" Alfie exclaimed.

Nina grinned at her friends. This was the moment they had all been waiting for. Their search was just about over. Everyone looked at the third door. "Who wants the honors?" Jerome asked, gesturing to the final door that stood in their path. Nina and Fabian glanced at each other and nodded. Slowly Nina walked to the door and turned the knob. It opened easily, and the group peered in to see what lay before them.

A large moonlit room lay before them. As they stepped through the doorway, everything seemed safe enough. Jerome and Mick watched for spikes in the floor, while Patricia and Amber glanced around nervously for flaming arrows. It was Alfie's sudden gasp that caught everyone's attention.

On the far side of the room was a pedestal. Perched on top of it was what looked like a piece of wood. "Is, is that the Palladium?" Nina asked. She ran up to the pedestal and examined the artifact. It was in the shape of a woman wearing battle armor. "It is! Guys, we found it!" she exclaimed. Everybody ran up to Nina to look at what they had been searching so hard for.

"Now we can get Mara back!" Jerome yelled in joy.

"Well done children. Well done indeed," a voice called from behind them. Blocking their only way out was Phokas. He grinned at the Sibuna members and clapped his hands. "I knew the seven of you could do it. Those Aspída idiots doubted you. But not me, I had every bit of—"

"Shut up!" Jerome yelled. "Where's Mara you creep? We did what you want, now let her go!"

"Now now Jerome," Phokas said slowly, "patience is a virtue."

"I could care less about patience or virtues. I want you to let Mara go!"

"All in good time. Now, remove the Palladium from the pedestal and we shall go get your friend. She has kept our other guest company all this time, so there is nothing to worry about."

"What other guest?" Amber asked slowly.

"Use your brain Miss Millington," Phokas teased. Amber scrunched up her face as she thought. Then, he eyes grew wide and her body started to shake.

"You have my father with Mara!" she screeched. "If you've hurt him, I swear I'll, I'll…"

"You'll stop talking and let him take us to both of them," Nina whispered in her ear. Amber swallowed and nodded to her friend.

As if it was made of glass, Fabian picked up the Palladium, and the seven Sibuna members followed Phokas out of the chamber. The young man had brought a flashlight, so it was easy for them to see what was around them as they navigated the corridors. They ended up going down the corridor Patricia and Amber had gone through. The two girls darted their eyes from side to side was they walked through the arrow chamber. This time though, no arrows came out of the wall.

The walk back to the entrance chamber seemed to go by much faster than when they had first come down. No one said a word the entire time. In her mind, Nina was going through every possible thing that could happen once they gave the Palladium to the Children of Erebus in place for Mara and Mr. Millington. Most of them were not good.

When they reached the staircase back to the ruins, Nina had never been happier to see the sky. Being above ground was the greatest thing she had felt in a long time. "I don't think I got the chance to thank you all. If it wasn't for you solving the key, I never would have figured out how to get down there," Phokas said with a wicked grin. Seeing seven scowling faces made him chuckle. "Well, we mustn't keep everybody waiting. Still have the Palladium then, Fabian? Good. Let's go." He marched them through the ruins, down to a waiting van.

As they all climbed into the back Fabian hissed to Nina, "Any ideas?" With a grim expression, she shook her head. If they didn't do what was told of them, it could be the end for Mara and Mr. Millington.

Phokas sat in the front seat and nodded to the driver. The car roared to life and tore down the road into the town. After several twists and turns down the quiet streets the van came to a stop outside a tall, narrow building. "Well here we are everybody," Phokas said. "Let's hurry it up." As they walked up the path Nina noticed how ordinary looking the building was. They had probably walked past it several times while they were here, but never even thought that it could be the base for the Children of Erebus. Everything around them was completely empty. There wasn't a soul in sight. Phokas led them up several flights of stairs until they reached a long hallway. At the end of it was a set of gold doors.

As they approached the door Nina felt Fabian's hand slip into hers. He gave it a reassuring squeeze just as the doors opened. A crowd of people stood waiting before them. They all watched in silence as Phokas paraded them into the room to stand before the men and women in the room. One man broke apart from the crowd and whispered something to Phokas. The younger man nodded and quickly left the room.

"Welcome, my young friends. I hope that your trip here has been pleasant," the older man said as he smiled at the group before him. He stared at in hungrily, his eyes growing with excitement with each second.

"Cut the small talk. Where's Mara?" Jerome asked sharply.

"And my dad," Amber added.

"Miss Millington, how rude of me. It's been much too long, you probably don't remember me. I am Pandaros. And what a pleasure it is to meet your friends."

"Cut to the chase mate," Mick said sternly. "You want the Palladium, and we want Mara and Mr. Millington back." Pandaros looked at Mick with a cross between confusion and amusement.

"It's Mick, isn't it? Well, Mick, you're a man of action. I like that. The other half of the bargain will be arriving shortly. Until then, make yourselves comfortable." Pandaros turned back to some of the people standing nearby and whispered to them.

Nina took the time to look around the room. It was a hall of some sort. Even though evil people met here, it was still very beautiful. At the far end of the room, Nina saw another set of doors. Suddenly, one of them swung open and Nina almost shrieked.

"Daddy!" Amber screamed as loud as she could. Entering the room was an exhausted looking Mr. Millington, and behind him, Mara. Forgetting everybody around her, Amber ran forward towards her father. When Mara saw all of her friends standing in the same room, she ran past Mr. Millington towards them. As the two girls passed each other they smiled and continued on their way. Mara reached the group and latched onto the nearest person to her, Jerome. The taller boy engulfed her in a hug so tight that it looked like he was about to break her in half. The other members of Sibuna all joined in on the hug. As Amber reached her father, she leapt into his arms and held onto him tightly. Tears streamed from her eyes as her body shook with sobs of joy.

As Amber sobbed into her father's shoulder he gently stroked her hair and told her that everything was going to be all right. The Sibuna group hug ended and Mara went to each of her friends to give them an individual hug.

"As touching as this all is, I believe you kids have something that belongs to me," Pandaros said sharply. He pointed to the Palladium in Fabian's hand. Amber and Mr. Millington joined the rest of Sibuna across from their enemy. Slowly, but with great determination, Pandaros crossed over to where they were all standing.

"Don't do this, Pandaros," Mr. Millington pleased. "They're just kids."

"Kids who don't know how to stay out of the way. Don't be a fool Nicholas. Give me the Palladium."

"He will do no such thing," a voice boomed out. Across the room stood Orrin. Behind him were the other members of Aspída. "It's over Pandaros. You can't win."

"Can't I? Orrin you have always been narrow minded. Think of the power we could have, the power we could share. An empire under our control."

"An empire built upon the backs of the innocent is not a sign of true power."

"That's what you think old man. I've come much too far to give up now." In a swift motion Pandaros knocked Mr. Millington aside, ripped the Palladium from Fabian's hand and placed the other arm around his neck.

"Fabian!" Nina yelled. "Let him go!"

"I'm giving you all a choice. The Palladium? Or the boy?" Slowly Pandaros backed away from the rest of Sibuna. "The clock is ticking. Which will you choose?" Pandaros glanced over at Aspída, looking for a reaction. Orrin stood there, his face impassive. Nina tried to reach for Fabian to pull him away from Pandaros, but Jerome and Mick held her back. Even Mrs. Millington seemed completely frozen in her place. No one else tried to move. They were locked in a stalemate.

It was Amber who first noticed that something was happening. A faint, pulsing glow was coming out the Palladium. She tapped Nina on the arm and pointed to the wooden statue. Nina passed the message to the other Sibuna members. Pandaros seemed too focused on getting the Palladium to even notice what was happening to it.

The pulsing glow turned into a steady light. Pandaros, finally noticing, almost dropped it in surprise. The light continued to grow and soon it lit the entire room. "What is this?" Pandaros yelled. Fabian used this moment to tear away from Pandaros and into the arms of his friends. "How is this possible?"

The light kept growing brighter and the Sibuna members were shielding their eyes from it. Despite it practically blinding her, Nina felt something strange come over her. This light was warm and comfortable. It also felt clean. It was the cleanest air she had ever breathed in her entire life. Somewhere in the room, someone screamed in pain. Nina was about to open her eyes when Mr. Millington cried out, "Kids whatever you do, don't open your eyes!"

The sound of people screaming filled the room, but Nina kept her eyes tightly sealed. Then, the screaming stopped. Something clattered to the floor, and that was it. The room was completely silent. "Is it safe to open our eyes?" Patricia asked.

"Yes, it's over." Nina opened her eyes slowly. The light in the room had returned to normal. The blinding light was gone.

"Where's Pandaros?" Alfie asked. The man had vanished. As had the rest of the Children of Erebus. The Sibuna members and the Aspída members were the only ones left in the room. Mr. Millington stepped forward and picked the Palladium up from the floor.

The other Aspída members then joined Sibuna and Mr. Millington. Mrs. Millington ran straight to Mr. Millington and kissed him. "Did they all run off?" Mara asked.

"No my dear. But we will explain later," Mr. Millington said, "But for now I think we should all go home. You've all waited so long for answers. A few more hours won't kill anybody."


	32. House of Departure

**I...I don't know what to say. This is the final chapter. I have had such an amazing time writing this story. I hope that when you're done, you'll read my final A/N at the bottom. And then leave a review telling me what you thought of this story. It's been over a year since I started this, and I can't belive that I have finally finished it. Thank you all for going on this journey with me as I wrote. This chapter is dedicated to each and every one of you, the readers of House of Ellada.**

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Chapter 32 House of Departure

A few more hours quickly flew by. Aspída drove the Sibuna members back to the Millington house and nobody wasted any time going to bed. Nina remembered saying goodnight to Amber and leaning back into her pillows. The next thing she knew it was morning, and very late in the morning at that.

In the other bed Amber was still sound asleep. The blonde was curled up into a little ball underneath the sheet. As quietly as she could Nina got out of bed and slipped in the bathroom. A hot shower sounded like the greatest thing in the world right then. She watched the water run down the drain and with it the horrors of the past several hours. Nina ended up staying in the shower much longer than she normally did. When she finally got out, Nina finally felt ready to face what they were about to learn. Amber was still sleeping so she inched towards the door and stepped out into the hall.

There were no sounds coming from Mara and Patricia's room so Nina figured they were still asleep. Mara would probably be asleep the longest considering the stress she must have been going through all night. A sudden sound of footsteps made Nina turn. Coming down the hallway was a still half-asleep Fabian. "Hey," Nina said softly as he approached. "Sleep all right?"

"I suppose as good as I could. Yourself?"

"Fine. Amber's still asleep."

"Mick too. Come on, let's go downstairs and wait for everyone." Fabian took her hand in his and the pair crept down the stairs to the foyer. Standing at the bottom looking at a painting was Mr. Millington.

He turned and smiled when he heard them come down the steps. "Morning you two. I trust you both got a good night's sleep."

"Yes sir," Nina replied.

"I take it everyone else is still asleep?"

"We're pretty sure of that," Fabian added.

"Then I'll have Leto bring something out for the two of you to munch on until everyone arrives. I can assume that you both are hungry?" Both teens nodded vigorously and followed Mr. Millington out to the patio. They each took a seat while Mr. Millington called for Leto to bring out some fruit and toast. As the pair sat across from each other they shared a humored smile. Everybody was going around acting like nothing had happened.

Leto came out with the breakfast, and as usual didn't say a single word to either of them. To Nina, everything about this morning seemed perfectly normal. "If they all keep acting like this, I'm going to lose my mind." Fabian whispered across the table to Nina. She nodded and glace over at Leto and Mr. Millington. From what she could hear, they were discussing the dinner menu. It was then that Patricia, Alfie and Amber came out onto the patio.

"Morning," Patricia said sleepily as she sat down.

"I had the weirdest dream last night," Alfie whispered. "We were down in these tunnels, and we actually found the Palladium. Philip was this evil dude. And in the end we saved Amber's dad, and all the bad guys got vaporized. I think it was by aliens."

"Um Alfie," Fabian muttered, "hate to tell you this, but that wasn't a dream. It was real." He pointed over to where Mr. Millington was standing and Alfie dropped his fork in surprise. It clattered against his plate, causing Leto and Mr. Millington to turn towards them.

"Well good morning to all of you!" Mr. Millington called. "I trust you three are well rested."

"Of course we are, Daddy. And I ran into Mick on my way down, he'll be here soon." Moments later Mick stepped out and casually nodded to everybody.

"Well that just leaves Jerome and Mara," Patricia commented.

"I'd love to let them sleep in as late as they want to, but Orrin will be here soon and they deserve to hear this as well. Amber, will you get them?"

"Of course, Daddy." She ran inside, past a petite maid.

"Mister Millington, your company has arrived," she said softly.

"Send them out, Tanya." The girl nodded and retreated back into the house. Moments later Orrin emerged onto the patio followed by Adriane and Lazar. In Lazar's hands was the Palladium. He gently set it in the middle of the table.

Mr. Millington directed for the Aspída members to sit at the table. "Where is everyone else, Nicholas?" Orrin asked, nodding to the remaining chairs at the table.

"Amber will be down with them in a moment."

When the remaining three emerged onto the patio, Nina immediately noticed how tired Mara still looked. Her hand was gripped loosely around Jerome's, and she gazed down at her feet. Jerome gave Orrin, Adriane and Lazar a weary glance. He still hadn't forgiven them for be so willing to sacrifice Mara. Not that Nina could blame him. They were all still upset about that.

"Excellent," Adriane exclaimed. "Now that we're all here I can imagine that the eight of you have some questions."

"Let's start out with this one. What happened to the Children of Erebus? The whole blinding light thing."

Adriane smiled. She knew that this was coming. "I'm sure by now you all know about the Four Elements."

"Of course. The clues were written around them," Fabian answered.

"Right. Well, as you all know the four elements are earth, air, fire and water. But, there is also a fifth element above all the others."

"Aether," Lazar said simply. "The air of the gods."

"What does that mean? How is there an air for the gods?" Mick asked.

"It was believed that there was the normal air humans would breathe, and then there was the bright, pure air of the gods. It was the air of Olympus.

Mr. Millington took a piece of paper from his pocket and began drawing a diagram. "Each of the four elements makes a corner of this diamond. The lines between them represent shared qualities. In the middle is aether, which is separate from the other four."

"So what we saw, that blinding light was aether?" Nina asked slowly.

"Yes."

"But I didn't think that it would exist," Fabian argued, "since there's no actual land of Olympus. The stories were all just myths."

"Be careful about what you claim is a myth, young man," Leto warned.

Nina nodded. "She's right Fabian. We thought the Cup was a myth, but it wasn't. I guess there's a lot out there we still don't know about."

"But what did the aether do to them?" Alfie asked.

"No mortal is meant to gaze into Aether. To put it simply, it made their minds burn. And not just their minds, their bodies as well."

"So they'll never come back?" Mara asked in a small voice. It was the first time she had spoken up. Everyone looked at her cautiously, unsure of what to say. Mara looked so scared and timid, and saying the wrong thing to her could break her in half.

"No. Never. They're gone for good," Adriane said gently. A slight smile formed on Mara's face. In an attempt to comfort her, Jerome put an arm around her shoulders.

"But what about the others? Pandaros said he had followers all over the world," Alfie brought up. Jerome glared at him as Mara's shoulders shook slightly.

"They aren't the only ones. Our teams across the globe will take care of them. You kids have nothing to worry about," Lazar said.

"There's something I still don't get," Nina said. "Why did the Aether come out of the Palladium? Why right then, when we needed it the most?" Mr. Millington and Orrin exchanged glances.

"It's a bit of old legend," Mr. Millington said. "The Palladium is in the image of the goddess Athena. During the Trojan War, Odysseus prayed often to Athena. It is legend that she was the one who told him about the Palladium and that as long as it remained in Troy's walls, the city would never fall."

"The legend continues to say," Orrin added, "that the Palladium's true power could only be unlocked by descendent of the house of Athena.

"So you're saying that one of us is a descendent of Athena?" Amber asked.

"No Princess, what I'm saying is that you are a descendent of Athena."

"Wait, what?" Amber asked slowly.

"I wanted to tell you sweetheart, I really did. There was just no right time to explain to you."

"No! I don't want to hear anymore!" Amber leapt from the table and ran out towards the gardens.

"Amber, wait!" Nina cried. She got up and ran after her. Fabian rose from his chair to follow them, but Mick pulled him back down and shook his head.

Amber weaved between bushes and over flower beds. She didn't stop running until she reached the water's edge. With tears streaming down her face she fell to her knees in the sand. "Amber!" Nina called out again. She sat down next to her friend and waited for her to say something.

"He lied to me. Everything that I've ever known is a lie. It's like I don't even know who my parents are anymore. How can I trust them again?" Nina placed a hand on Amber's shoulder.

"Because you know everything they did, they did to protect you."

"I know. But it still doesn't make it fair." Nina didn't respond. She just let Amber sit in the sand and continue to cry. By now she knew her friend well enough to know when words were needed and when they weren't. After a few minutes the sobs became sporadic sniffles. "I can't believe I'm kneeling in sand. And in my new skirt."

"There's the Amber I know and love," Nina said with a smile. She helped Amber to her feet.

"Thanks Neens. I'm ready to go back now." Together they walked back up the beach to the patio.

"Princess?" Mr. Millington asked cautiously when he saw them come up. Amber nodded, which made Mr. Millington smile. "Right, so, does anyone else have any more questions?

"What does it mean for me to be a descendent for Athena? I mean, I know it means I'm related to her. But what does that mean for me? Nina's the descendent of some Egyptian person, and she's the Chosen One. Will I have the same thing?"

Mr. Millington looked startled for a moment. He looked back and forth between Amber and Nina. "Well, I don't how it will compare to Nina, but being who you are means someday you will be part of Aspída. You will be responsible for holding the first clue."

"Wait you're going to hide the Palladium again?" Patricia asked. "After everything we went through to find it?"

"We have to. Something this powerful should never be in the hands of anyone who might abuse it," Adriane explained. Amber stared at the Palladium sitting in the center of the table.

"And if they tried, they would have to go through me to get to the first clue?" Amber asked.

"Right. But I'll teach you how to hide the clue and to encrypt the others so no one else will ever be able to find it. You will be the only person in the world who will know where the first clue is. But we can talk about all of that another time, Amber. You won't be joining Aspída until you're older."

"Mr. Millington, you're making it sound like she doesn't have an option," Jerome pointed out.

"I know. But there is no other option. The role of Key Keeper has been held by the Millington family for generations. The first Key Keeper was a direct descendent of Athena, and out family has been traced back to that line for hundreds of years. But Amber, even as Key Keeper you will be able to live a completely normal life."

Other than the constant fear of someone kidnapping me, like they did you. Well I'm not going to do it. I'm sorry Daddy, but I can't join Aspída."

"Miss Millington, this isn't the best time to have this conversation. We have many other things to do today. So if you kids don't have any other questions, we will be on our way. Nicholas, I expect you to have some ideas of where to hide the Palladium soon. I will be in touch." Orrin stood and reached for the Palladium. As he did Amber snatched it into her own hands.

"Ambs what are you doing?" Mick yelled.

"All this thing does is cause people to fight. If this thing is such a threat to humanity, then it shouldn't exist. Before anyone could even think about stopping her, Amber threw the Palladium to the ground. The wood shattered into thousands of pieces on impact. Silence filled the patio. No one moved, or even breathed.

"What did you just do?" Orrin screeched. "That artifact was thousands of years old! And you just destroyed it!" He gaped at the shattered pieces of the Palladium, the object that Aspída had worked so hard to protect for years on end.

"I got rid of any chance for someone to steal the Palladium ever again. You're welcome." She dusted off her hands and looked at Orrin. The elderly man opened his mouth, probably to scream again, but Lazar and Adriane quickly silenced him.

"Orrin, perhaps it is time for us to move on," Adriane said.

"What?" Orrin snapped as he turned to face the woman. "Absolutely not! Not with the threat of the Children of Erebus in other parts of the globe. And now we no longer have the Palladium."

"We will talk about it with the others. Nicholas, we'll show ourselves out," Lazar said as he moved away from the table. "I hope the rest of you enjoy your trip, if we don't see you again have a safe trip home. And Miss Millington, thank you." He bowed his head to her and followed Adriane and Orrin back into the house.

"How mad do you think Orrin really is?" Alfie whispered to Patricia.

"Very. But Amber did the right thing. That thing doesn't need to be around. It's made such a mess of everything."

"So what now?" Mick asked.

"Well, we have a lot of damage control to do. Many well known people in the city have gone missing, so we have to find a way to cover this all up," Mr. Millington said. "Because of this, I'm sorry to say that I'm sending you all home early."

"What? Daddy that's not fair! Why can't they stay?" Amber asked.

"It's not just your friends I'm sending home. You and your mom are going home too."

"But, Daddy," Amber cried.

"No Amber. My mind is made up. Once I have things settled here I'll be home."

"How long do we have?" Nina asked.

"The car will be here to take you to the airport in an hour."

"That's it?" Alfie asked. "I didn't get a chance to get any souvenirs!"

"Come on Alfie," Patricia said. She yanked him from his seat and dragged him inside as he complained about not getting to get the stuff he wanted. One by one, everyone else followed.

When Amber and Nina reached their room they got to work packing up their things. "I can't believe he's sending us home," Amber complained as she packed. "We didn't get to enjoy our vacation."

"I know Amber, but there's always next summer."

"You're right."

An hour later all eight students stood on the front porch waiting for the car to take them up to the airstrip. No one spoke. It seemed that everyone was still upset at being sent home early. Nina thought about having to wait almost two months before she could go back to school and be with her friends again, especially Fabian. At least this time they would part knowing where they stood.

"Look like we'll have to wait a little longer for that date," Fabian whispered in her ear. She smiled and nodded.

"We've waited all this time. A few more weeks won't hurt anyone." She slipped her hand into his and looked down the driveway again for the car. She could just see it pulling into the estate. "Our ride's here."

"This is it then," Patricia said.

"Ah come on Trixie, you know as well as anyone that it's never really the end," Alfie said, slinging an arm over her shoulder. "There's always something new around the corner."

"You get that off a fortune cookie, Mate?" Jerome asked as he picked up his suitcase. He held Mara's hand as they descended the staircase.

"Don't be ridiculous. It was a popsicle stick." The conversation lasted until they got to the airstrip. The return ride to the mainland seemed even shorter than the trip out. Mrs. Millington led the way to the terminal and once they were all through security, she handed each of them a ticket.

"Nina sweetie, your gate is just down that way. Can you find it by yourself?" She asked as she gave Nina a ticket.

"Yeah, I'll be all right. Thanks Mrs. Millington." The woman smiled and pulled her phone out of her handbag.

Amber stepped up to Nina and gave her a hug. "I can't believe I won't get to see you for almost two months."

"You'll be all right, Amber. You can pass the time by shopping."

"You're right! And when you come back to school we can go shopping all the time and it will be so much fun and—"

"Amber!" Patricia yelled. "Save it for later."

"Sorry." She backed away from Nina and Patricia stepped up to give her a hug.

"Don't get too re-Americanized, all right?"

"Wouldn't dream of it Patricia." After they hugged Nina gave the rest of her friends a final good-bye hug. She whispered to Mara that everything would all work out as she hugged her. Mara nodded and whispered thanks in her ear. The last person for her to say good-bye to was Fabian.

"Call me when you land," he said.

"It'll be like three in the morning your time."

"I don't care. Call me anyways."

"Whatever you say." Nina laughed at held onto him for several seconds. When they finally broke apart it didn't seem like it was long enough.

"Hurry up or you'll miss your flight," Fabian said. He bent down to give her one final kiss, then handed her the strap of her suitcase. As Nina walked down the hall, she turned and waved good-bye to her friends one last time.

When she reached the terminal, an intercom buzzed to life. "Flight 83761 to New York now boarding. Flight 83661 to New York now boarding." Nina found her seat and settled in for the long ride home. A flight attendant came by to see if she needed anything, and it was several minutes before another intercom came to life.

"Thank you for your patience. This is your captain speaking. I hope that you all have enjoyed your time here in Greece. Our flight for New York will be departing in just a few moments."

**THE END**

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**So I'm crying right now as I'm typing this. I've been so emotionally attatched to this story for the past year and 3 months. I hope that you were all pleased with the ending. I worked very hard to make this ending have great clousre. I want to take the time to thank my original beta Nebrae, this story would suck without you. I also want to thank my amazing friends from the forum who have helped me over the past few months with ideas and suggestions. You guys are all amazing and I love you! **

**Now it's time for me to say the hardest thing ever. If you noticed the title, it was caled House of Departure. It's not just something I chose to be clever with words since the first chapter was called House of Arrival. There is a second meaning to it. This chapter is my departure from FanFiction. That's right, I am going into retirement. I have come to realize that I am no longer growing as a writer on this website and it is time for me to expand. I hope that some of you will go to FictionPress to read the work I have there. If not, that's ok. You read this. My last testimony to fanfiction. **

**I want to thank all of you. Every person who has read my stories, reviewed, favorited, subscribed, anything. It was all for you. A writer is nothing without readers. So all my writing is dedicated to you. It's been a great run, but now it is time to go. **

**Sibuna.**


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